Harry Addams
by Savy13
Summary: The Addams Family gets a new member.
1. Addams

**Here is a new story! I know that this has been done before, but in my opinion it has not been done enough! I wanted to try my hand at writing the humorous-macabre style. There is a bit of a Point-of View switch, which I normally try not to do, but most of this story will be from Harry. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family**

"Mama!" Four year old Wednesday Addams whined as she ran into her mother's greenhouse. "Mama, the boy in the cemetery broke my ax!"

Morticia Addams stopped clipping the heads off of the roses on her bushes to peer down at her little devil.

"A boy in the cemetery?" she asked in her cold, calm voice. "How ever did he get there?"

Wednesday Addams huffed. Her mother was obviously missing the point.

"He just appeared. But when I tried to cut him in half he wouldn't let me! And when I tried again it broke!"

"But how?"

"Mama! It doesn't matter _how_! He _broke_ my _ax_!"

Morticia's curiosity was certainly spiked. It was not often when a child could get a step ahead of her Wednesday.

"Well let us go see him then." She said, putting down her shears. Wednesday gave a satisfied smirk and pulled her mother by the hand to the graveyard. They came across the ax first.

"Look! Just look at what he did!" Wednesday pouted. Morticia examined the weapon more closely. There was a large nick in the edge, and the blade was as dull as a butter knife. But that was impossible. She had helped her daughter sharpen it just this morning.

"We can fix it, mon diable, do not fret. Now where is this mystery child?"

Wednesday scowled at her mother's lack of outrage on her behalf and pointed at a nearby tomb.

Morticia circled it to find a child crouched down trying to hide behind the stone. He was a little older than Wednesday herself. His pale face was marred by a gloriously hideous scar, framed by messy black hair that was as dark as her own, and complemented by bright green eyes that were wonderfully reminiscent of some of her Mama's more lethal brews.

He looked up at her petulantly after a brief moment of fear. Morticia recognized the tortured soul within and already felt fond of him.

"She's lying. I didn't do it." He said.

"You are not in trouble, little one. Where did you come from?"

"I'm not going back."

"Are you a run away?"

"Yes... no. I escaped. And I didn't run. I popped."

"Popped?" She asked intrigued.

"Yes. 'Popped'. Like this." He said. Then with a faint pop he disappeared, and reappeared several feet to the right.

There were very few times when Morticia could admit to being surprised, and this was one of them. She had never seen or even heard of such a thing! She doubted even Mama would have dreamed of it!

Wednesday forgot her animosity for a moment.

"Teach me!" She ordered.

"I don't think I can. I don't know how I do it. I just do. Besides, you are too little anyway." He scoffed.

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"AM not!"

"ARE too!"

"Children, please." Morticia chided. "Why did you want to leave your home dear?"

He seemed to think about it for a minute.

"Everything." He finally said. "They didn't like my 'popping' and other weird things, and they said I was a freak. They made me do all the chores like cleaning the house and weeding the garden-"

"Clean!" Wednesday interrupted. "Why would you clean a properly dirty house? And the weeds are the best part of a garden!"

The boy just shrugged.

"It sounds just horrible, mon pet. Do not worry, we will not make you go back to such a horribly normal place." Morticia assured him. "What is your name?"

"Harry."

"That's a stupid name." Wednesday said.

"It is not!"

"Harry is a fine name. I had a distant cousin named Hairy." Morticia said. "But what is your last name, mon cher?"

"I dunno. Don't think I have one."

"Then how about you become an Addams? Harry Addams?"

He thought it over for a moment.

"Okay. What do I call you?" He finally said. Morticia smiled.

"You may call me Mama."

He looked at her suspiciously.

"Does that make you my mum, then?" he asked.

"If you wish me to be."

He paused again.

"I've never had a family." He said.

"Once an Addams, always an Addams, and you will have more family than you will know what to do with. Everyone in this cemetery is an Addams."

Harry looked around in awe at the seemingly endless tombstones.

"Yeah." He finally said. "Yeah, alright."

"Great! Then I am your sister Wednesday. That means I get to make your life Hell."

...

The Dark Lady, Mama, Harry supposed she was now, and Wednesday led him to the large dark house on the property. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon would have hated it. Harry loved it.

They walked straight on inside, and almost ran into a man that Harry thought looked a lot like Frankenstein.

"Ah, Lurch, could you ask the family to gather in the sitting room?" Harry's new Mama asked. He made a grunting noise and shuffled off.

Harry was taken into a room with black leather couches and strange decorations that looked like the ones he had seen on Halloween. This family certainly wouldn't mind if he wasn't normal.

"Just sit here, mon cher." his mama told him, motioning to the couch.

"Tish! You spoke French!"

Harry looked up to see whom had spoken. It was a pale man with dark eyes and slicked back hair, a thin mustache and wearing a pin-stripped suit.

"Not now, Gomez." Morticia said gently.

"And who might this be?" the man asked, looking down at Harry.

"Are we having a guest for dinner? Yummy!" said a portly boy about eight years old as he walked in. He was still skinner than Dudley.

"I'm not food." Harry frowned at him.

"I guess you are too skinny anyway." He sighed, poking Harry's arm with a thoroughly disappointed frown.

"His bones might add an interesting flavor to some stew, though." cackled someone behind him. A hunched crone with very few teeth and far too much flyaway gray hair was eyeing him. She bent over and gave him a sniff. "Or is he for Cleopatra and Kitty Cat?"

Harry huffed and crossed his arms.

"Was' all the fuss about?" asked another man that entered. He was bald and dressed in all black, his eyes looking as if they might pop out of his head. Lurch came in behind him, a severed hand on his shoulder. His mama had been right! This family was huge!

"This is Harry." Wednesday spoke up. "I found him so he is mine!"

"I have invited Harry to become an Addams." Morticia went on. "He ran away from a devastatingly normal home."

"And he can 'pop'! He is going to show me how." Wednesday boasted.

"We can pop him?" the boy grinned, gasping in delight.

"No, Pugsley." Wednesday said with a roll of her eyes. "Show them Harry."

"Manners, Wednesday." Their mother chided.

"Now!"

Harry huffed. He didn't like her telling him what to do, especially when he was older than her, but he really didn't mind showing off. So he 'popped' to the other side of the room, and then back.

"Bravo! Bravo!" The man named Gomez yelled as he started clapping.

"I can make things float too." Harry boasted, making several skulls and candles take to the air and zoom around before returning them to their places.

"How wonderful! Tish! You are absolutely right! He most certainly is an Addams!" He grinned. "My name is Gomez Addams, my son, and I am your new Papa. You already know my lovely wife and striking daughter. And this here is your older brother Pugsley. My brother, and your Uncle Fester-"

"Pleased to meet you." the bald man said in a rumbly voice, shaking one of Harry's small hands in both of his big ones.

"Tish's mother, your Grandmama-" he said, motioning to the old crone. She gave him another experimental sniff and then shrugged.

"Lurch our butler, and Thing our... um... thing!"

The severed hand on Lurch's shoulder waved at him, and Harry waved back.

Being an Addams was going to be great.


	2. Family

**Here is my next chapter! I'm glad that you all seem to like it!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or the Addams family.**

Soon after the introductions, Morticia and Gomez took him upstairs to show Harry his room. Thing jumped of off Lurch's shoulder and onto Harry's as he passed, but Harry found that he didn't mind as much as others would have. He liked Thing. It was strange, just like him.

Harry's breath stopped as he entered the room that was now his. It was a perfect blend of everything he wanted and everything he was used to. It was normally sized, yet worlds bigger than the cupboard under the stairs. The walls were draped with black velvet curtains Harry was sure hid secret doors or compartments, and there was a large desk that had drawers stuck everywhere possible on its surface. One of them rattled violently as if something was already inside it.

The bed was narrow and shaped like a coffin, comfortably lined with red satin, and pressed against the velvet lined wall so that the curtains enveloped it almost completely. Harry thought he might have never been able to sleep without it, since he was so used to the close quarters of his cupboard on Privet Drive.

"It's wicked." Harry grinned.

...

"How did you sleep, Harry darling?" Morticia asked the next morning.

"Like the dead." he smiled back.

"How lovely."

Harry gave his breakfast an experimental poke with his fork. It squealed loudly and he jumped in surprise. Then he hesitantly took a bite. To his surprise, he liked it quite a lot.

...

All the rest of the day the family worked to make sure he was included. Gomez gave him several knifes and other sharp projectiles to hide away on his person.

"You will need practicing to wield them correctly, and how better to learn than through experience?" He asked. "I'll teach you how to sword fight too, once you are actually taller than the sword that is."

Harry scowled as Gomez chuckled at him and threw a knife at his father's head. He ducked in time for it to soar past him.

"That's my boy!"

Harry just smiled and made the knife fly back to his hand, so that Gomez had to dodge it a second time.

...

"Harry!" He looked up to see his mother in the greenhouse doorway, a hand at her chest. "You gave me such a pleasant heart attack. What are you doing with Cleopatra?"

"I'm just petting her." He shrugged stroking the vines as they attempted to strangle him once again.

"Do be careful, dear, she is very delicate. Why don't you have Wednesday go show you her pets?"

"Okay!" he said, disentangling himself from the man-crushing creepers and following the directions he was given by Thing, who had still not left his side.

...

Wednesday was more than happy to introduce Harry to the hairier and scaler half of the family. There was Kitty Cat, a large lion that lounged about the house like a common house cat and liked to be scratched behind the ears. Then there was Wednesday's pet spider Homer, who was the size of an average dinner plate. They snuck in to Pugsley's room to see his pet octopus Aristotle, whom they then stole and put into the piranha tank downstairs. To their disappointment however, Tristan and Isolde merely regarded the intruder with distain and indifference.

"I guess they don't like seafood." Harry shrugged.

After that they went up to the roof to visit Zelda, the larger than average vulture that resided on top of the house. She stared at them with one beady eye, but otherwise did not even move from her perch.

...

Uncle Fester had tried to teach Harry the way of explosives and the art of mad science, but electricity never worked the way he wanted it to, often not working at all in his presence. Uncle Fester was disappointed, but assured Harry that as long as everyone created their own mayhem it didn't matter which way they did it. It made Harry feel a little better about rendering three of his Uncle's bombs useless.

He happily left that field to his Uncle and Pugsley.

...

However he did find that he had a talent in the kitchen with Grandmama. He was very good at taking in what she taught him, and soon he was a constant presence around her kitchen as he helped her and even sometimes made concoctions of his own. He had done some cooking for the Dursleys, but this was a thousand times better. Grandmama could make scrumptious meals, potions, poisons, and any concoction you could think of.

She had discovered that he was nearsighted on his third day with the family, and had set to work making him a cure. She ground several carrots and the eye membrane from a sea serpent together with a mortar and pestle until it was a smooth paste. That was added to a bubbling cauldron of Augrey tears. She stirred the brew with calculated focus, and when it was done she used an eyedropper to dispense three drops into each of his eyes. It burned and blinded him for the better part of two hours, but when his vision returned Harry could see better than ever, and his aim was even more accurate than before.

...

Wednesday jumped out from her hiding spot and hit Pugsley hard over the head with her mallet. The strike would have knocked any normal boy unconscious, but Pugsley was an Addams, and he had an extraordinarily thick skull anyway. The blow knocked him into the wall, where he shook his head to reorientate himself.

"You're out, Pugsley!" She yelled happily. Then she shrieked as she was pinned to the wall by three different throwing stars holding her dress.

"And now you are out." Harry said triumphantly. "That means I win."

Pugsley just gave a dazed blink, but Wednesday gave him a pouting glower as he grinned boastfully. Thing on his shoulder gave him a thumbs up. Harry had been with the Addams for almost two months now, and had never felt more at home anywhere else. He and his two siblings had an eerie bond with each other and got along scarily well. They still had their own sibling spats and battles, but they knew that together they were an unstoppable force, a dastardly trio that few could come up against.

"Harry? Can we speak to you for a moment?" Morticia asked, as she and her husband glided into the room.

"Of course, Mama." he said with a small bow in her direction.

"We wanted to ask you something of great importance, mon cher. (Not now, Gomez.) You truly are a part of our family, and we wanted to preform a ritual on the next full moon. Very old magic that makes you a real part of our family." Morticia explained.

"It is very simple, just a swap of blood, a bit of chanting, and you will really be a part of our bloodline." Gomez said happily. "It is really just a ceremony. Nothing will be any different between us. You will always be family."

Harry gave them both an unsettling smile.

"The next full moon?" he confirmed.

...

Tallow candles had been arranged in a circle in a dry patch of the swamp. Harry stood in the middle with Gomez, while the rest of the family stood outside of it, chanting. They had stood, unmoving, for a long time until the chanting reached its loudest and most intense, when Gomez pulled a shining dagger above his head. The hilt was clean and polished, set with garnets, but the blade itself was crusted over with the blood of ancestors past. Harry could just barely see the words inscribed into it: _Sic gorgiamus allos subjectatos nunc_.

Gomez brought down the knife and slashed his palm open, then Harry held out his hand so that his father could do the same to him. Harry took a breath and they both clasped each other's bleeding hands. The chanting had abruptly stopped, and the flames of the tallow candles flashed and started to burn blue, causing azure light to wash over them all. Harry held his breath as he felt the blood of his father mix with his, and without warning every candle extinguished, leaving them all in darkness.

"Welcome to the Addams Family, Harry."


	3. Magic

**Sorry about the wait everybody! It normally doesn't take me this long to update. So, Harry will be about eight in this chapter, but remember they all sound way older anyway. **

**There is some weird stuff on the internet. I had to look up all of this magic stuff. It was creepy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family. But I wish I did. **

"I'm going to kill you Harry!" Wednesday yelled.

"What?" Harry scoffed. "She looks better like this anyhow."

Wednesday scowled at him and looked down at her newly decapitated doll, Marie Antoinette.

"She does." Wednesday agreed at last. "But I am still going to kill you. On principal."

"I have no doubt that you would. But how about a trade instead?"

Wednesday paused, a thoughtful look on her face.

"Go on." She finally said.

"I can try to teach you to 'pop' and make things fly."

A wicked grin crossed his sister's face. Harry could see the evil thoughts flashing through his sister's eyes.

"Very well." She said at last. "I accept. But if you fail to teach me, your life is forfeit."

...

For a while it looked as though Harry's life was in question. No matter how much he tutored and taught his sister, she was not able to preform any of the special abilities that Harry could. After a fruitless month, the degree of Wednesday's frustration grew to a dangerous level. She was not used to not getting her way, and she didn't even know what the word 'patience' meant, let alone how to put it into practice.

"I have an idea." Harry said, as his sister's eyes glinted with murder. "I think we have been skinning the corpse before it is dead."

"Which means?"

"You have to have the power before you can learn to use it."

"I could always take yours after I kill you." She shrugged.

"You could, but I am not certain where you would find it." Harry said, "Is there an extra organ, you suppose?"

"We can find out."

"Later perhaps, if my idea doesn't work. Come on, we have to go to the library."

...

"What are you two doing?" Pugsley asked, looking suspiciously down at his younger siblings as he crawled into the attic with them. They were both lying on their bellies, heads propped on their hands as Thing turned the pages for them.

"Learning about Witchcraft." Wednesday said. "There are plenty of rituals, but we think we are going to create our own. Do you want to join?"

Pugsley pulled a horrified face.

"And never be able to work with my bombs again? No thanks." He said.

"Suit yourself." Wednesday shrugged, turning back to the old text. The problem with the books that they were studying, as well as the entire branch of Witchcraft that their mother subscribed to, was that most of the power behind it came from an external source. Their mother and grandmama had monthly rituals, calling on blessings from demons and spirits, and the gains were often varied and were extremely temperamental. The tedious proceedings would require precise pentagrams and pentacles, sacrifices, incense, candles... Too much for the children to consider doing the rest of their lives. So instead they took careful notes of relevant practices and set to combine them into one large ceremony that would awaken the power within Wednesday herself, rather than having to call upon others. It took them the better part of two months until they were both satisfied.

When the next dark of the moon came, the siblings were ready. They made a circle of wax drippings from the candle made of gravedigger's fat, and carved runes of productivity, transformation, success, magic, and rebirth into the hard clay ground. Wednesday took her place in the center of the circle, and cut open the palm of her hand, letting her blood drip over the runes. Smoke curled up from where the blood landed with an ominous hiss. Then both of the children stood unmoving in perfect silence until the moon was at it's peak. Wednesday then threw her hands up into the air and rolled her eyes back, chanting in latin.

A thunder-clash was heard through the clear night, and Wednesday kept chanting louder. The wind picked up and started to roar. Harry watched on in amazement, and finally Wednesday finished, collapsing in the circle. Harry stayed put, waiting in anticipation. He must have stayed still for over an hour before his sister stirred again.

"Did it work?" She groaned, touching her head.

"Only one way to find out."

...

It was a week before Wednesday was finally able to make an object float on her own. She was absolutely ecstatic, and did not let Harry rest at all until she had complete control on manipulating objects.

"I am so proud of you both." their mama told them with a fond smile. "I did not create my own ritual until I was twelve."

"We can show you if you would like." Harry offered. "Then you and Grandmama would not have to do so many rituals."

"Where would the fun be in that, mon cher?" she asked. "You and Wednesday have a fine gift, but I am content with my lot in life. Besides, your Grandmama and I bond over our rituals together. It has become a sort of tradition."

"The sacrifices do sound fun." Wednesday agreed with a thoughtful sort of longing. "You will still teach them to me when I get old enough, right mama?"

"Of course, mon diable."

Once her telekinetic abilities were as controlled and as strong as her brother's were, she began pestering him to teach her how to 'pop'. It was three months before Wednesday was able to teleport so much as a foot away from her starting point. She was so pleased with her accomplishment that she began pushing herself too much too soon, and the third time she was able to 'pop', left her entire left arm behind.

Like a true Addams, she took the incident in stride with only a small scream of initial surprise.

"I didn't know I could do that." Wednesday said as their mama and grandmama observed her severed arm and argued about the best way to reattach it. Thing poked at her hand experimentally, and then tapped his pointer finger in impatience, as if annoyed by his new friend's lack of mobility.

"Can you still control it?" Pugsley asked curiously.

"I don't know..."

"Try to wriggle your fingers."

Wednesday frowned and a look of concentration crossed over her face. Her hand remained as still as ever.

"No." She sighed.

"That's disappointing." Harry said. "Can we at least play with it first?" he asked his mother.

"It is best if we attach it fresh, mon garcon." His mother told him regretfully.

"Well _that's_ no fun." Harry huffed.


	4. Giant

**I am watching the old Addam's Family tv show for inspiration. Wednesday is only six there, and she is so adorable! Came home from school crying because the knight killed the dragon in her story book... Poor thing...**

**Anyway, it has now been six years since Harry first turned up in the cemetery...**

**Disclaimer: I own neither Harry Potter nor the Addamses...**

"I just can't get it right." Harry sighed. "At first I thought I wasn't putting in enough nightshade, but then it just congealed into a florescent pink paste that smelled like dung."

"Can I have it?" Pugsley asked.

"I already spread it around Cleopatra's roots, Pugs, sorry. But she seemed to like it. She sprouted two more flower bulbs. Complete with teeth. I'll have to make some more for Mama to fertilize her other plants with..."

"Wish I could help you, but I have always been completely hopeless at potions and cooking." Wednesday said, not looking up from her copy of the Book of Solomon. "They never even blow up. They just sit there."

She was right. Almost everything she had attempted to make on her own had turned just as tasteful and benign as water. She was just not proficient in remembering all the properties of the ingredients. Her expertise remained in magic and maiming. Harry had never met someone with as clever a mind as his sister when it came to death and torture.

Harry flipped through his Herbal Guide with increasing annoyance. He had been working on this poison for a little over two weeks and had hit a standstill. It was incredibly frustrating. Maybe Cupana seeds would help... But then he would have to add Poppy leaves to counteract the effects of the caffeine, and that would throw everything off.

The shrill scream of the doorbell made all three of the Addams' children look up. They were not expecting any calls from family, and they hardly ever got visitors.

"I wonder who that could be." Wednesday said, putting aside her tome and picking up Homer whom had been lounging beside her.

"You raa-ng?" They heard Lurch ask in the foyer.

"Lets go look!" Pugsley said. "It's a shame you gave that goo to Cleopatra Harry!"

"Well if I had _known_ we were having guests of course I would have saved some. It is only proper manners." He huffed

"Sush." Wednesday told her elder brothers, peering out of the door ahead of them.

"Hello." came the genial voice at the door.

"He is bigger than Lurch is!" Pugsley gasped at the sight of the man that was on their porch.

"Are they related do you think?" Wednesday asked.

"Y-eee-sss?"

"I've come to speak to Mr. and Mrs... Addams, is it? Abou' young Harry."

Pugsley and Wednesday both looked at their brother and he just shrugged.

"Cooo-me in." Lurch said, moving out of the way so that the wide man could squeeze through the front door. He was three inches taller than Lurch, and at least six times as wide. His head was hidden by a wild mane of hair, only showing a pair of beetle-like eyes, rudy cheeks, and a hint of a mouth. He wore a long moleskin coat with several suspiciously moving pockets. Harry had the curious urge to look through it.

"Who are you?" Harry said, speaking up from the parlor door. The giant man gave a startled jump, and one of the frames fell off of the wall.

"You startled me!" The giant apologized. "Harry? Is tha' you?"

"I have always been me. But who are you?" Harry asked again.

"S'cuse me." He said, what little was visible of his face going red. "My name is Rebus Hagrid."

"Hagrid, you say?" Said Harry's father from the staircase. "Are you positive you aren't an Addams?"

"Positive, Mr. Addams."

"Please, call me Gomez. And this is my wife, Morticia."

"A pleasure." She said from beside her husband. "Can we offer you something to eat?"

"Tha' would be very much appreciated ma'am."

"Lurch? Could you please inform Mama?" the Addams Matriarch asked. The butler gave a stiff nod and shuffled to the kitchen.

"Please, come into the parlor. Have a seat." Gomez said, ushering the giant man in. The man named Hagrid took up an entire love seat by himself, and gladly took a sandwich that Grandmama handed him.

"Stoat!" he said with surprise. "Stoat sandwiches are my favorite!"

Grandmama looked plenty pleased with this and gave him the entire tray. As he munched away, his eyes fell on Wednesday, who was stroking Homer like a cat.

"You have an acromantula?" He gasped with delight. "I have one too! Aragog, 'is name is. 'Course, he is all grown now, but I remember when 'e was that tiny... 'E has a whole big family in the forest now."

Wednesday brightened.

"A whole family! How wonderful! Did you hear that, Homer? Maybe we can find you a girly friend and you can have just as big a nest one day!" She said affectionately to her pet. Homer gave a happy squeal and waved several of his legs.

"Maybe we can set 'im up with one of Aragog's daughters." Hagrid said happily.

"That sounds just lovely." Morticia smiled.

"It's good to find some spider-caring folk. Seriously misunderstood creatures, spiders." Hagrid sighed. Wednesday nodded in solemn agreement.

"So why are you here, Mr. Hagrid?" Gomez asked him.

"Jus' Hagrid, sir. I'm here to talk to you abou' Harry. You see, I am the Keeper of the Keys and Gamekeeper for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Harry sat up straight in his seat in interest.

"Never heard of it." Grandmama sniffed.

"It's on'y the best magical school there is!" Hagrid cried. "Harry's name 'as been down since he was born! 'Course we had a hard time findin' him. Musta sent a 'undred letters to the Dursleys before we realized he wasn't there... What happened anyway?"

"My aunt and uncle were horrible." Harry frowned. "I ended up 'popping' away when I was five and ended up here. Mama and Papa made me an Addams. We had a blood ritual and everything."

"Poppin'?"

"Magically transporting to a different place. I have always called it 'popping'." Harry explained.

"Apparating." Hagrid said, looking impressed. "It's called apparating. But usually you have to be sixteen before you can learn, an' you have to be seventeen to get a license."

"Well, having a license never stopped me from driving." Pugsley said.

"You must be very powerful if you can do that already, Harry. Tha's why you should go to Hogwarts. It'll give you the best education you can ask fer. We've got the best teachers. All very qualified. Professor McGonagall is the best I've ever seen at Transfiguration, and Professor Flitwick was a champion dueler in his day. Professor Snape is the youngest person ever to gain his Mastery in potions, and is held in very high regard as one of the best."

Harry's eyes glinted with interest. Being taught by a potions master! Maybe he could help him with his troublesome poison! And no doubt he could learn a lot from a certified teacher...

"And they are all under the greatest headmaster the school has ever seen; Albus Dumbledore." Hagrid said proudly. "I can introduce you to the spiders too, if yeh would like. Theres a lot of interestin' creatures in the forest."

"School though?" Gomez asked. "Why have children if you are just going to send them away?"

"Please Papa?" Harry begged. He loved the sound of this new school.

"I want to go!" Wednesday pouted. "I want to go learn magic and see the spiders!"

Hagrid gave her a fond chuckle.

"Maybe when you turn eleven." he told her.

Gomez looked conflicted, but took one look at his son's pleading face and gave in.

"Alright, alright!" He smiled. "You can go to the Pigwarts school."

Hagrid was too enthralled by the arrival of Kitty-Cat to correct him.

"You have a pet lion!" he cried happily.

"Doesn't almost every family?" Wednesday asked, petting the purring feline behind the ears.


	5. Magical

**Professor Quirrell is a pain in the butt to write, I cannot spell the word 'withdrawal', and I have a very bad image of Grandmama that I cannot get rid of. **

** Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family. But I wish I did. Very much.**

Hagrid fit in with the Addams extraordinarily well. He quickly became a favorite of Grandmama's, due to his enthusiasm for her food. He had entranced Pugsley and Uncle Fester with a description of the flying motorbike he owned. Both of the Addams got a mischievous gleam in their eyes that promised danger to come.

His passion for all animals was soon discovered, so after dinner the three children introduced him to each of their many pets. He was thrilled by them all, but Harry could tell that Homer was still his favorite. He supposed the man had a soft spot for spiders.

As night fell, Hagrid graciously accepted the invitation to stay for the night, waving away Morticia's apologies that they did not have a bed big enough for him.

"This is more than fine, Mrs. Addams." He said as he made himself comfortable in the front room, Kitty-Cat curling up beside him.

"Well, if you are sure." She said hesitantly. "Gomez, we must obtain a bigger mattress for one of the guest bedrooms. I would not be able to stand it if we were unable to accommodate a guest again."

"Indeed, my love!" Gomez agreed. "No guest of ours should have anything to say of our lack of hospitality!"

...

The next morning, Hagrid procured an old tin can from one of the many pockets on his moleskin coat.

"It's a Port-key." He explained. "It is charmed to magically transport someone from place to place. Dumbledore gave it to me when he figured out you was in the States. It is set off to go at 10:14 exactly so that we can get your school supplies in London. Your folks can come too, if they want."

Pugsley and Uncle Fester were hesitant at first, but finally the entire family agreed to go, even Lurch and Thing. So as it grew closer to 10:14, everybody gathered around and placed a finger on the tin.

"Sorry for the squeeze." Hagrid said, whose bulk was taking the majority of the room. "I don't think Dumbledore expected for anyone but Harry to come. Nearly time now. One... Two..."

Harry vaguely wondered what happened to 'three' as a massive jerk from his navel pulled them through space and dumped them in an alcove of a dingy bar.

"The Leaky Cauldron." Hagrid said proudly. "It it a fairly famous place."

"I can see why." Gomez grinned.

"The usual Hagrid?" The bartender asked as his eyes slid over the strange family.

"Not today, Tom. Jus' passing through. Hogwarts business. I'm taking young Harry here to get his supplies."

"Good lord." the man named Tom gaped as his eyes fell on the youngest Addams son. "It can't be Harry Potter?"

The other patrons in the bar grew quiet and turned to look in their direction. To Harry's horror, he soon found himself surrounded by people introducing themselves and shaking his hand.

"Welcome back, Mr. Potter-"

"Doris Crockford, Mr. Potter, I am so pleased to be meeting you at last-"

Harry sent a pitiful look at Hagrid, who interpreted the horrified glance quickly. He gave a heavy cough and a fake laugh.

"Well, we've got to be going now, lots to buy-"

The reluctant crowd did not seem to want to dispute him, and dispersed very slowly. A shy looking man next to a pillar took his chance to step forward.

"M-Mr. P-P-Potter. C-can't tell you how pleased I am to meet you."

"Well hello, Professor, I didn't see you there." Said Hagrid genially. "Harry, this is Professor Qurriell. He will be your Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor."

"Pleased to meet you." Harry said, although he really wasn't at all. Qurriell seemed to sense this, and only got more nervous.

"F-f-fascinating subject. N-n-not that you n-n-need it, eh, P-p-potter?"

"Addams." Wednesday snapped.

"I-I-I b-beg your p-p-?"

She did not wait for him to finish.

"His name is Harry Addams. Not Potter." She said. The stuttering teacher did not seem to know what to say to this, or even how to react. He sat their for a moment blinking at her, his mouth open, before Hagrid had the good sense to take them all away.

"Yes, well, we will be seeing ya, Professor. Got to go now..."

The Addams left the stunned teacher behind, leaving out the backdoor to a small inclosed space with only a trashcan.

"How pathetic." Wednesday sneered. "I could chew him up and spit him out."

Harry had to agree with her.

Hagrid took out his pink umbrella with some difficulty (the small space was awfully crowed with the entire family and the giant man) and tapped a brick on the wall, three up and one over from the trashcan. For a moment nothing happened at all, and then the bricks began to slide and rearrange themselves into an archway.

"Welcome to Diagon Alley." Hagrid grinned.

All of the Addams looked on in amazement. It may have been a little too bright and cheerful for their tastes, but none of them could deny the wonder of the magic in the setting. There were apothecaries, bookshops, trinkets and sweets on display, broomsticks, owls, and other things that Harry couldn't even hope to identify.

"Gringrotts is our first stop." Hagrid said, pointing at a stark white building that made all of the Addams squint. "You can exchange currency there, or get some money out of the Potter's vault."

"I have a vault?" Harry asked.

" 'O course! Didn't think your mum and dad left you with nothing, now did ya?"

Harry just shrugged. He didn't know what to expect anymore.

The entire family followed Hagrid into the bank before they split up. Hagrid told them that not all of them could fit into the 'carts', whatever those were, so Gomez, Morticia, and Lurch went to go stand in the line that would exchange their 'muggle' money, as the others went to go make a withdrawal.

While the giant fumbled about in his pockets looking for the vault key, Grandmama struck up a conversation with the goblin in a strange language.

"There's the little devil!" Hagrid said at last, loudly dropping it onto the desk. The goblin gave him a derisive stare, obviously annoyed that his conversation with the hag was cut short, before calling out for a goblin named Griphook.

"You speak Gobbledegook?" Hagrid asked her amazed.

"Of course. I had a goblin lover several centuries ago." She said offhand. All three of the children made horrified faces, stuck with an image they did not want or need.

"Er-" Hagrid said dumbly, not knowing how to reply.

"Into the cart, please." Griphook said, ushering them inside a literal cart, much like the kind that was used in mines. He pulled a lever, and they shot downward, spiraling and twisting much like a roller-coaster. Except that this was much, much better. Granny cackled as they rode, and all three of the children had their hands in the air.

"A dragon!" Wednesday gasped.

"What?" Harry asked her, turning to see. But they dipped again out of sight.

"It was a dragon! A real dragon!" Wednesday said again.

"It is rumored that Gringrotts uses them to guard some of the higher security vaults." Hagrid explained, looking a little green. "Crikey, I'd like a dragon."

"Oh, so would I!" Wednesday said dreamily.

No one was able to reply, for a few seconds later the cart came to a jolting halt. Griphook clambered out of the car and unlocked the vault six hundred and eighty seven. Harry, Wednesday, and Pugsley all gasped at the heaps of gold, bronze, and silver that winked back at them. Pugsley dove for it, only held back by Grandmama's firm hand on his shirt.

"This is Harry's." She told him, and the older boy pouted.

He grabbed a handful of what he thought he may need, and they returned once again to the cart for a bit of a shorter ride to a second vault numbered seven hundred and thirteen. This vault did not have a key, and merely melted away when Griphook ran his nail down it. He caught the children staring and smirked.

"If anyone but a Gringrotts Goblin tried that, they would be sucked inside and trapped there." He said proudly.

"How often do you check to see if someone is in there?" Wednesday asked.

"Oh, about once every ten years."

"Okay," Hagrid said, pushing a small brown package into his pocket and getting back into the cart. "Can we go a bit slower this time please?"

"One speed only." Griphook smiled nastily, and they took off again, eventually coming to a rest at the ground floor.

"How did that work?" Pugsley asked, confused. "We were going downhill the whole time, how did we end up back here?"

"Magic, Pugs." Harry said. "Magic."


	6. Explanations

**Two in one day! I know things get a little out of order, but too bad! We also get our first glance at Draco Malfoy!**

**I do have to tell you that Hagrid will not be getting Harry a pet. I love Hedwig, but she doesn't really fit. She might get eaten at the Addams House. Harry will have a different way to send letters to his family oversees (which will be explained n some other chapter)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family. **

" 'Ere you are, Harry." Hagrid said, handing him a thick envelope once they had met up with the others of their group. "This is the formal acceptance letter and whatnot. Your school list will be in there too."

Harry perused the list as the others argued about where they wanted to go.

"Harry will go get his robes first." Morticia said authoritatively. "I will go get his books and the telescope, and Grandmama can get the phials, scales, and cauldron at the apothecary. Gomez, perhaps you and Fester would like to take Hagrid for a quick pick-me-up? He still looks rather green."

"Capital idea, Morticia!" Gomez smiled, trying to pat Hagrid on the back, but only reaching just above his elbow.

"What about Wednesday and I?" Pugsley asked.

"You could either stay with Harry or come along with any of us that you wish, I suppose."

"I want to go with you, Mama." Wednesday said at once. Harry knew that she was just aching to get her hands on some of those books.

"I'll go with Grandmama, I guess." Pugsley said at last. "No offense Harry, but looking at rat spleens is sure to be more interesting than watching you try on clothes."

"Then it is settled." Gomez said. "Lets meet back at the Cauldron in, say, about an hour? Then we can go get Harry's wand and go into some places as a family."

They all split, and Harry headed towards the shop called Madam Malkin's. The door chimed as he walked in, and a woman came out to meet him.

"Are you here for Hogwarts, dear?" She asked. He nodded. "Wonderful, there is someone else here getting their school robes as well."

She ushered him to the back and offered him an empty seat while she finished up her current customer. The pale blond boy on the stool ran Harry over with a critical eye as Harry did likewise.

"Are you going to Hogwarts as well?" He demanded more than asked.

"I am." Harry said shortly.

The boy only pretended to smile and went on. "My father's next door buying my books and mothers' up the street looking at wands," he said. "Then I'm going to drag them off to look at racing brooms. I don't see why first years can't have their own. I think I'll bully my father into getting me one and I'll smuggle it in somehow."

What a waste. If you were going to smuggle something in it would have to be a lot less obvious in order to not draw attention. It would likely be confiscated by a teacher the first time he flew it.

"Have _you_ got your own broom?"

"No." Harry said simply. Grandmama used one sometimes, but he had never needed to. He could just 'apparate' as Hagrid called it.

"Do you play Quidditch at all?" the boy persisted.

Was that a sport? It sounded like the name of an anti-itch cream.

"No." He said again..

"_I _do- Father says is will be a crime if I am not chosen for my House team, and I must say, I agree. Know what House you will be in yet?"

Harry had no idea what this boy was talking about, and was getting rather annoyed with the fact. He just shook his head silently.

"Well, no one really knows until they get there, do they, but I know I'll be in Slytherin, all our family have been- imagine being in Hufflepuff, I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?"

"A Hufflepuff? That sounds like something I'd eat for dinner." Harry said. The blond boy looked a little surprised, but whether it was because of what he said or the fact that Harry had finally responded with more than one syllable.

"Yes, well..." He gave an awkward laugh before changing the subject. "Where are your parents, anyway?"

"My mother is getting my school books and my father is treating our friend to a drink. He doesn't take to the Gringrotts carts so well."

"Yes, well, they are our kind aren't they?" The boy asked, clearly not interested in their whereabouts at all. This boy needed to be taught some manners.

"They are magical, if that is what you mean." Harry said. They were. The Addams may not have been the traditional witches and wizards, but all of them certainly had magic in their blood.

The pale boy seemed content with this answer and went on.

"I really don't think they should let the other sort in, do you? They're just not the same, they've never been brought up to know our ways. Some of them have never even heard of Hogwarts until they get the letter, imagine. I think they should keep it in the old wizarding families. What's your surname, anyway?"

"Addams." Harry said, just as Madame Malkin declared the boy all done. He hopped down from the stool and allowed Harry to take his place, shaking his hand as he did.

"I'm Malfoy. I'll see you at Hogwarts then, Addams." He said before leaving the shop. Harry watched him leave as a charmed measurement tape wrapped around him on it's own.

"Little prick." He mumbled after Malfoy's back.

...

After he received all of the robes he needed, he went on to the Leaky Cauldron where his father, Uncle Fester, and Hagrid where. Uncle Fester was taking a great delight in something called Firewhiskey, which caused him to belch fire every few minutes. Harry was not sure if this was a magical side effect of the drink, or something unique to his Uncle.

"Hagrid, what is Quidditch?" Harry asked.

"Blimey, Harry, I keep forgettin' how little you know about everything." Hagrid said. "It's a type of sport played on broomsticks... I can't really explain it."

"And what about Hufflepuff and Slytherin?"

"They are two of the four Houses at Hogwarts that the students are divided into. Everyone says Hufflepuff's are a lot 'o duffers, but..."

"Oh, so they are like something I'd eat for dinner."

"Eh?"

But at that moment the rest of the Addams' arrived, Lurch carrying the majority of the purchases. There was a flurry as everyone settled down into their seats.

"Oh, Gomez there is the most wonderful looking place just off of Diagon." Morticia said. "I passed it on the way here, and it looks positively delightful. It's called Knockturn Alley I believe."

"Good. Because those apothecaries didn't even carry quality ingredients." Grandmama groused. "I am not sending Harry to school without the best!"

"Knockturn? Oh no, you don't want to go down there..." Hagrid said.

"Oh nonsense, it will be lovely." Morticia said with a winning smile that silenced the giant.

"I have one more question, Hagrid." said Harry as the conversations at the table began to diverge. "Why am I so famous here?"

That caught everyone's attention. Every head at the table turned to hear the answer, and Hagrid started to turn a bright red.

"I'm not sure I'm the best one to tell ya that, Harry."

"Please. I am rather curious as well." Gomez said. Hagrid looked from one face to another, sighing as he realized that everyone was waiting for him to go on.

"Well, what you've got to understand is that, like anywhere else in the world, there are good people and bad people. So not all wizards are good. A few years ago, one of them went as bad as you can go. His name V-" He stopped and tried to compose himself. "His name was V-"

"Would you like to write it down?" Wednesday offered.

"Nah, I can't spell it. Alright, his name was Voldemort." He said, his voice dropping to a whisper.

"Flight from Death." Morticia translated.

"It was dark times, very dark times. _Voldemort_ started to gather up some followers, brought them over to the dark side. Anyone who stood up to him ended up dead. Your parents fought against him, but nobody lived once he decided to kill 'um. Nobody. Not one. 'Scept you."

"Voldemort tried to kill me?" Harry asked. Hagrid gave a solemn nod.

"Yes. That ain't no ordinary cut on your forehead, Harry. A mark like that only comes from a curse, and an evil curse at that."

"What happened to him?" Wednesday asked. "The Voldemort fellow?"

Hagrid shushed her at the sound of the name and looked over his shoulder nervously before answering her question.

"Well. Some say he died. Codswallop, in my opinion. Nope. I reckon he's out there still, too tired to carry on. But one thing is absolutely certain. Somethin' about you stumped him that night. Tha's why you're famous, tha's why everybody knows your name. You are the Boy Who Lived."

There was a silence that echoed around the table as everyone digested this knew information. It was finally broken by Pugsley, who said,

"Cool."


	7. Departure

**No, Flitwick is not going to be Grandmama's lovechild. Firstly because his last name is Flitwick, not Frump. He might be related distantly, but I don't think anyone will figure it out for awhile. **

After Lunch in the Leaky Cauldron, the Addams and Hagrid made their way to Ollivander's for the part that Harry was most looking forward too: A magic wand. The shop itself was empty and dark, and it made Harry feel right at home. The dusty silence was forcibly broken as a man on a shelf ladder rolled into sight and crashed to a stop. He had ghost white hair that flew about his face and wide, ice blue eyes that looked right through them all. He watched them long enough in silence for Hagrid to begin to get uncomfortable.

"I was wondering when you would come to see me, Mr. Potter." He said at last, starting to pull boxes from the shelves. "It seems only yesterday that your mother and father were in here buying their first wands."

"I go by Addams now." Harry said firmly.

"My apologies, Mr. Addams." Ollivander said graciously, handing him a short, polished stick. Harry hardly had time to realize that he was holding it before it was taken from him again.

"No, no, try this one-" Ollivander murmured, giving him another and yanking it away once more almost immediately. Soon, a pile of wands began growing by their side. Most of the wands did nothing at all, but several caused items around him to explode. Those were Pugsley's favorite.

"A tricky customer, eh? Hm. I wonder..." Ollivander said thoughtfully before disappearing into the back. He returned with a single dusty old box.

"Try this one." He said, handing Harry the wand inside. "Eleven inches, holly, with phoenix feather, nice and supple."

As soon as Harry touched the wood a chill ran down his spine and they both began to emit an eire glow. This was the one.

"Curious." Ollivander muttered.

"What is curious?" Harry asked, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.

"I remember every wand I ever sold, Mr. Addams. It just so happens that the phoenix whose feather resides in your wand gave another. Just _one_ other. It is curious that you should be destined for this wand, when its brother gave you that scar."

_Voldemort_, Harry remembered. _How interesting._

"The wand chooses the wizard, Mr. Addams." Ollivander continued. "It is not always clear why. But I do think that it is certain we can expect great things from you. After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things. Terrible, but great."

Harry blinked at him, and then gave a sinister grin.

...

The next stop was the infamous Knockturn Alley.

"Oh, this is much better!" Gomez smiled, taking a self-lighting cigar out of his pocket. Lurch gave a shuddering moan of agreement. Hagrid said nothing and shuffled on his feet, looking for the first time vaguely uncomfortable with the Addams. But none of them paid any mind as they began their spree.

The first stop was the apothecary, where Grandmama stocked Harry's potion kit with proper ingredients, and got a few things for herself as well. Morticia found several delightful dresses in a clothing store, and Wednesday and Harry bought an arm load of books each at one of the bookshops.

Poor Lurch was beginning to stagger under the packages now, and was graciously helped by Hagrid and Fester.

"Just one more place." Gomez assured them as the entire family was ushered in to Borgin and Burkes. It was the gem of all stores, and housed everything an Addams could ever want.

"Oh, just look at those manacles, Gomez." Morticia sighed.

"Reminds me of our honeymoon." he replied.

"Mama, can I have a shrunken head?" Pugsley asked.

"But you have such a wonderful collection already, dear."

"But these talk, look!"

When they left Borgin and Burkes that day, they were the new favorite customers, and took with them a double sided ax, a new iron maiden, a set of butcher knives, several bottles of an unknown poison, and one smart-mouthed shrunken head.

"It's abou' time for the return port-key to go off." Hagrid told them, pulling out a greasy sandwich wrapper from his coat. "It'll take you back in just a mo'." Then from another pocket he pulled out an official looking paper. "And this here is your ticket, Harry, now tha's very important, stick to your ticket. The train for Hogwarts leaves at exactly eleven o'clock from Kings Cross station on September the first."

"Thank you, Hagrid. I'll see you at Hogwarts!" Harry said as he and his family grabbed the port-key. The last thing he saw before he was home again was the giant waving goodbye.

...

It was nine-forty five in the morning on the first of September. Harry's trunk was packed and waiting on the parlor floor. Everyone was preparing to say their goodbyes. Morticia was dabbing at her eyes with a black handkerchief, and Wednesday even stopped trying to sew the lips on Pugsley's shrunken head shut.

"It won't be the same without you here to cause mayhem." his mother sighed. "I don't know how I will be able to stand it."

"It will be alright mama." He told her. "I will be back for Christmas."

"I know, mon garcon... It is just difficult." She sighed.

"We have a present for you." his dad spoke up.

"A present?" Harry asked. His father reached behind his back and pulled a black box from nowhere. Harry knew exactly what it was. Thing used these boxes to move about the house, and could travel between them no matter how far apart they were.

"We thought you could take this so that Thing could go back and forth." his mother said. "We know how fond you are of each other, and he could deliver letters as well."

"It is perfect." Harry smiled as the box top was pushed open and Thing waved at him from inside. Harry waved back and then hugged his parents, followed by Grandmama and Uncle Fester. Lurch was surprised by a hug next before Harry moved on to Pugsley, and finally Wednesday.

"I will be with you next year." she promised. Or threatened. Harry wasn't sure which.

"I'll miss you, Wends." He told her.

"I'll miss you too, Har. It won't be as fun with you gone." She sighed, hugging him tighter.

"I will be back before you can shriek." He told her. Wednesday gave her brother a small smile and let go so that he could grab his trunk. With one last look at his family, Harry apparated away to an alley outside Kings Cross Station in London.

He was dizzy for a few minutes, and leaned up against the brick wall for support. He had never traveled that far before.

Once the world had stopped spinning, he grabbed his trunk again and dragged it into the station. Once it was fitted onto a trolley with Thing's box perched on top, Harry went off to find the platform nine and three-quarters that was printed on his ticket.

But of course magic was never that easy. Platform nine and platform ten were clearly visible, but nine and three-quarters didn't seem to have been built yet. That or Hagrid forgot to tell him something crucial on how to get in, such as tapping the brick to get into Diagon Alley.

Harry paused in contemplation, observing his surroundings in order to find a solution. After only ten minutes, Harry spotted a rather ostentatious group with all red hair pass him. Each of the children except for the small girl had a trolley with a trunk like his, and one even had an owl.

"Every year, packed with muggles-" he heard the matriarch of the group complain as they passed.

Positive that this group was made up of wizards and witches, Harry watched them carefully as one by one the children walked straight through the barrier between platforms nine and ten.

"Excuse me." Harry spoke up, when only the woman and her two youngest were left. "Pardon me, Madame, but I was wondering if this was the way to get onto the platform?"

The woman looked rather surprised, but then gave Harry a kind smile that made him want to shiver.

"It is, dear. Is this your first year at Hogwarts?" She asked.

Obviously.

"Oui, Madame." he nodded.

"It is Ron's first year as well." the woman smiled, motioning to her son. He was long nosed and freckle faced, and gave Harry a brief nod of hello.

"All you have to do is go straight at the wall." The lady continued. "Best do it in a bit of a run if you're nervous."

"Good luck!" The little red-head told him. She was far too... chipper.

"Thank you, Madame." Harry said to the woman, walking calmly towards the barrier and letting the brick swallow him. For a split second there was blackness, and then Harry was on a different platform completely, adorned by a sign that read '9 & 3/4'. A scarlet steam engine was belching thick smoke over the hectic crowd attempting to get their belongings on the train and find a seat. Harry picked his way through the crowd to one of the cars and attempted to pull his trunk after him.

"Need help mate?" a voice asked.

Harry turned around sharply, his hidden knife already in his hands when he saw that it was a pair of twins from the red-headed family. He quickly stowed the knife away again before they even knew he had it.

"That would be very helpful, thank you." He told them as they each grabbed an end to his trunk and placed it in the overhead of an empty compartment.

"We are Fred and George Weasley by the way." One of them said.

"A pleasure." Harry said. "I am Harry Addams."

"The pleasure is all ours, Mr. Addams." The other twin said with a mock bow. "If you will excuse us..."

And they made their exits to return to their family. Harry sat down in his seat and casually watched the crowd, waiting for the train to depart.


	8. Allies

Harry was just contemplating pulling out one of his books when a soft knock sounded on the door. He looked up to see the youngest of the red-headed Weasley's.

"Do you mind if I sit here? Everywhere else is full." He said.

Harry highly doubted that, but an Addams was nothing if not hospitable. He waved for the boy to take a seat. The door opened again without a knock this time. The twins stood in the hall just outside.

"Hey, Ron." they greeted their brother. "Listen, we're going down the middle of the train - Lee Jordan's got a giant tarantula down there." The one Harry believed was called Fred informed him.

"Right," mumbled Ron.  
"Harry," introduced the other twin, George. "This is Ron, our brother, by the way. See you later, then."  
"Bye," said Harry and Ron. The twins slid the compartment door shut behind them. "My name is Harry Addams."

"Are you American?" he asked, frowning at the accent. "I could have sworn you were French, the way you spoke earlier."

"I was born in Britain, but raised in mother taught me French."

"Oh. Well that is cool I gu-" the boy called Ron trailed off as he caught sight of Harry's forehead.

"Y-you... You're Harry Potter!" He gasped.

"No." Harry said, a bit annoyed. "My name is Harry Addams. Potter was the name of my birth parents."

"Oh. Um. Sorry." He said, the blood rushing to his face. Ron looked at his forehead again. "So that's where You-Know-Who-?"

"Yes." said Harry, tracing the scar fondly. "I wish I could remember more than I do."

"You remember some of it?" Ron gasped.

"Just a bunch of green light." Harry sighed remorsefully. It would have been so wonderful if he knew more.

"Wow."

"Are all of your family wizards?" Harry asked, remembering the large group. The Twins seemed like they would be useful, not to mention fun being around. He wondered how much damage they could do if they were given an ax.

"Er- yes, I think so." said Ron. "Mum has got a second cousin who is an accountant, but we never talk about him. I'm the sixth in our family to go to Hogwarts. You could say I've got a lot to live up to. Bill and Charlie have already left - Bill was Head Boy and Charlie was captain of Quidditch. Now Percy's a Prefect. Fred and George mess around a lot, but they still get really good marks and everyone thinks they're really funny. Everyone expects me to do as well as the others, but if I do, it's no big deal, because they did it first. You never get anything new, either, with five brothers. I've got Bill's old robes, Charlie's old wand and Percy's old rat."

Harry didn't try to hide wrinkling his nose at the Ron's whining, but the boy didn't notice anyway.

Ron reached inside his jacket and pulled out a fat grey rat, which was asleep.

"His name's Scabbers and he's useless, he hardly ever wakes up. Percy got an owl from my dad for being made a Prefect, but they couldn't aff- I mean, I got Scabbers instead."

"If he is so useless you should try dissecting him." Harry suggested. "Rat spleens always come in handy, and their innards are delicious."

The Weasley grew very pale, and the rat gave a squeak as if it had understood, and Ron quickly stuffed the animal back inside his jacket.

While they had been talking, the train had carried them out of London. Now they were speeding past fields full of cows and sheep. They were quiet for a time, watching the fields and lanes flick past. Around half past twelve there was a great clattering outside in the corridor and a smiling, dimpled woman slid back their door and said, "Anything off the trolley, dears?"

Harry, who hadn't had any breakfast, leapt to his feet, but Ron's ears went pink again and he muttered that he'd brought sandwiches. Harry went out into the corridor. To his great disappointment, they did not have any candied porcupine, or chocolate covered grasshoppers, but they did have blood and acid pops, exploding bon bons and pepper imps, cockroach clusters, chocolate frogs, fudge flies, peppermint toads and jelly slugs. He bought an armful of the tasty treats and went back into the compartment and dumped it all into an empty seat.

"Hungry, are you?" Ron asked.

"Starving." Harry agreed. Ron had taken out a lumpy package and unwrapped it. There were four sandwiches in there. He pulled one of them apart and said,

"She always forgets I don't like corned beef."

"You can have some of mine." Harry offered. Ron took a look at the sweets he had brought back, and turned green looking at the most of them. He hesitantly took a few of the chocolate frogs, peppermint toads, and jelly slugs. Harry figured those were the best, so he tried them first. To his disappointment, the slugs and toads were disgustingly sweet, even if the latter did make him feel like the creatures were hopping around inside of him. The frogs were even more of a let down.

At first he thought he was in for a real treat when he saw the live frog jumping about, but one bite proved that it was just a spell, and that the frogs were completely chocolate. He immediately gave the rest of the three types of candies to Ron, who in turn gave Harry some of the cards that came with the frogs. Harry found these fascinating. He picked up one card that showed a man's face. He wore half-moon glasses, had a long crooked nose and flowing silver hair, beard and mustache. Underneath the picture was the name Albus Dumbledore.

"So this is Dumbledore." Harry said calmly.  
"Don't tell me you'd never heard of Dumbledore!" said Ron, tearing into another package, looking for one containing Agrippa. Harry turned his own card over to read the back.

_Albus Dumbledore, currently Headmaster of Hogwarts.  
Considered by many the greatest wizard of modern times, Professor Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon's blood and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel. Professor Dumbledore enjoys chamber music and tenpin bowling._

Harry had to say that he did not sound very impressive. When he turned to card over again, the picture was missing. How interesting. Soon he had not only Dumbledore but Morgana, Hengist of Woodcroft, Alberic Grunnion, Circe, Paracelsus and Merlin. He finally tore his eyes from the druidess Clidona, who was scratching her nose, to open a bag of Cockroach Clusters. They were amazing, and Harry's eyes rolled back in his head as he chewed. Ron had to quickly hide his disgust when Harry looked back at him again, but he didn't particularly care. Ron was the one who had weird taste.

The countryside now flying past the window was looking wilder. The neat fields had gone. Now there were woods, twisting rivers and dark green hills. There was a knock on the door of their compartment a the round-faced boy came in. He looked tearful.

"Sorry," he said, "but have you seen a toad at all?" When they shook their heads, he wailed, "I've lost him! He keeps getting away from me!"  
"He'll turn up," Harry said sympathetically. He would be sad too if his lunch had run away.

"Yes," said the boy miserably. "Well, if you see him..." He left.  
"Don't know why he's so bothered," said Ron. "If I'd brought a toad I'd lose it as quick as I could. Mind you, I brought Scabbers, so I can't talk." The rat was still hidden away in his pocket. "I tried to turn him yellow yesterday to make him more interesting, but the spell didn't work. I'll show you, look..." He rummaged around in his trunk and pulled out a very battered-looking wand. It was chipped in places and something white was glinting at the end.

"Unicorn hairs nearly poking out. Anyway -"He pulled out his sleeping rat and had just raised his wand when the compartment door slid open again. The toad less boy was back, but this time he had a girl with him. She was already wearing her new Hogwarts robes.  
"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one," she said. She had a bossy sort of voice, lots of bushy brown hair and rather large front teeth.

"We've already told him we haven't seen it," said Ron, but the girl wasn't listening, she was looking at the wand in his hand.  
"Oh, are you doing magic? Let's see it, then."She sat down. Ron looked taken aback.  
"Er - all right." He cleared his throat.  
"Sunshine, daises, butter mellow, turn this stupid, fat rat yellow." He waved his wand, but nothing happened. Scabbers stayed grey and fast asleep. Harry had to control himself to keep from snorting. Wednesday had made better spells than that.  
"Are you sure that's a real spell?" said the girl. "Well, it's not very good, is it? I've tried a few simple spells just for practice and it's all worked for me. Nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, I mean, it's the best school of witchcraft there is, I've heard - I've learnt all our set books off by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough - I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?" She said all this very fast.

"I'm Ron Weasley." Ron muttered.

"I am Harry Addams." Harry said, getting to his feet and bowing, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. Hermione blushed and seemed not to know how to react, so returned the conversation back to school as quickly as possible.

"Pleasure. Do either of you know what house you'll be in?I've been asking around and I hope I'm in Gryffindor; it sounds by far the best,I hear Dumbledore himself was one, but I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad... Anyway, we'd better go and look for Neville's toad. You two had better change, you know, I expect we'll be there soon."And she left, taking the toad less boy with her.  
"Whatever house I'm in, I hope she's not in it," said Ron. Harry did not respond. She could be a useful alley to have.

After another long moment of silence,the door opened yet again without knocking. Draco Malfoy stepped in flanked by two trolls that looked as though they could be related to Lurch.

"Is it true then? I heard Harry Potter was in this compartment." His eyes fell on Harry and he momentarily lost his composure. "Addams?"

"Good to see you again, Malfoy. Would you like to come in?" Harry asked.

"You're Harry Potter?" the blonde asked, stunned.

"I used to be."

Malfoy gaped a bit more, and Ron sniggered at his expression. Draco's face suddenly hardened as he turned onto the other boy.

"You think I'm funny, do you? No need to ask who you are. My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford." Ron flushed in embarrassment and Draco turned back to Harry. "You'll soon find out that some wizarding families are better than others, Addams. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there." He stuck out his hand for Harry to shake, but Harry ignored it.

"Why?" He asked Malfoy.

"What?"

"Why are some families better than others?"

"Because they are not purebloods!"

"What does that mean?"

"All of their families aren't magic. They don't come from good stock." Malfoy explained.

"So wizards are like dogs, then? Or horses?" Harry asked him with a slight tilt of his head.

"We are not like dogs!" Draco blustered.

"The concept you are speaking about is common in dogs. Except instead of purebloods they are called thoroughbreds, or purebreds." Harry explained. "And if that is so, why do you not like the Weasleys? From what I can see they are all magic."

Draco spluttered as he tried to think of a reason that would not sound childish. Harry did not give him a chance to.

"Why don't you go ahead and sit down?" He invited. Ron gave him a look like he thought that he was crazy, but Harry ignored him.

"Er... um, no. We are about to be there, so we should go change into our robes." Draco blustered. "I'll, um, see you at school then Harry?"

"You can count on it."


	9. Sorting

**A lot of this is taken from the text. But we get to the sorting!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family. Unless someone wants to give the rights to me...?**

Harry fell in love with the castle the moment he set eyes on it. It was large, and dark, imposing and magical. It could have been Dracula's castle, except that this was far more grand. He knew Wednesday would love it just as much.

The trip across the lake was uneventful, as was the short walk into the castle. There they were met by a tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood there. She had a very stern face and Harry's first thought was that she would prove to be quite a formidable opponent.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.

"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."

She pulled the door wide. The entrance hall was so big you could have fit the whole of the Dursleys' house in it. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches like the ones at Gringotts, the ceiling was too high to make out, and a magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. While you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room.

The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting."  
Then she left the chamber. The children erupted into quiet but widespread nervous twitters. Harry wasn't much concerned.  
"How exactly do they sort us into houses?" he asked Ron curiously.  
"Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking."  
"I hope he wasn't." Harry said. "It isn't any fun unless someone gets hurt."  
Ron gave Harry a very strange look, but at that moment several of the students screamed, and Harry turned to see what was causing the commotion. A group of arguing ghosts had floated in through the wall. The were rather unthreatening on the whole, but Harry saw one promising one covered in bloodstains. McGonagall came back and ushered the ghosts away before Harry could get a better look. Then she led the first years through the double doors into the Great Hall. It was a lot less appealing. The ceiling was interesting, reflecting the night sky outside, but the hall itself was too bright, and the golden cups and goblets glittered tastelessly.  
In front of the staff table stood a small stool with an old hat perched upon it. Harry had seen similar things in Grandmama's wardrobe. A hush fell over everyone, and a rip near the brim of the hat opened wide like a mouth, and it began to sing.  
"_Oh,you may not think I'm pretty,  
But don't judge on what you see,  
I'll eat myself if you can find  
A smarter hat than me.  
You can keep your bowlers black,  
Your tops hats sleek and tall,  
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat  
And I can cap them all.  
There's nothing hidden in your head  
The Sorting Hat can't see,  
So try me on and I will tell you  
Where you ought to be.  
You might belong in Gryffindor,  
Where dwell brave of heart,  
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry  
Set Gryffindors apart;  
You might belong in Hufflepuff,  
Where they are just and loyal,  
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true  
And unafraid of toil;  
Or yet wise old Ravenclaw,  
If you've a ready mind,  
Where those of wit and learning,  
Will always find their kind;  
Or perhaps in Slytherin  
You'll make your real friends,  
Those cunning folk use any means  
To achive their ends.  
So put me on! Don't be afraid!  
And you won't get in a flap!  
You're safe in my hands(though I have none)  
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"  
"_So we've just got to try on a cap!" Ron said over the applause. "I'm going to kill Fred, he was going on about wrestling a troll."  
Harry frowned. So they wouldn't get to wrestle a troll? That was a shame. But the hat's song did give him plenty to think over about the houses. Addams' had plenty of family loyalty that the Hufflepuff's boasted of, but he was anything but patient. He was plenty smart enough for Ravenclaw. After all, he and Wednesday had made their own ritual when he was only eight. He would also liked to think that he had the bravery and chivalry required to be a Gryffindor. And he had no end to his cunning.  
"Abbot, Hannah!" Professor McGonagall read from a scroll of parchment. A timid looking girl slowly walked up to the stool and allowed the hat to be lowered onto her head.  
"HUFFELPUFF!" The hat shouted after a moment. The table bedecked in gold and black cheered as she hurried over to them. McGonagall allowed the noise to die down before she called the next name, which, incidentally, was his.  
"Addams-Potter, Harry!  
The whispers that followed were almost immediate.  
"Potter, did she say?"  
"_The _Harry Potter?"  
"I didn't know he had been adopted, I don't know any Addams', do you?"  
Harry ignored them all and took a seat on the stool that Hannah had just vacated moments before.  
_Hmm, difficult. Very difficult. True loyalty, but you are quite right in thinking that you would eat the Hufflepuff's alive. You have a strange absence of fear, but that is not the bravery that Gryffindor calls for. _A voice spoke in Harry's ear. _It is a very close decision, Mr. Addams, but I can see you thriving only in one real place. It better be...  
_"SLYTHERIN!"  
The entire hall went silent. Their was no cheers for a full five seconds as Harry took the hat off of his head and replaced it on the stool. Only then did the house of green and silver start cheering loudly. Harry gave them all a smile and took his place among them, several of the students patting him on the back. It was not lost on him that the other houses and staff were making nothing but polite claps. Harry didn't really care. The Sorting resumed, and Susan Bones joined Hannah in Hufflepuff. Millicent Bulstrode was the next to join Harry at the Slytherin table, followed by one of Draco's bodyguards, Vincent. The next person that Harry recognized was Hermione Granger, who was so eager that she ran up to the stool and jammed the hat onto her head. The hat debated with itself for a while before shouting out,  
"GRYFFINDOR!"  
Gregory Goyle and a pretty girl named Daphne Greengrass were sorted into Slytherin after her.  
The Longbottom boy was sorted into Gryffindor, and was so relieved that he ran half-way to his house table with the Sorting Hat still on his head. He had to return it to a stern faced McGonagall amid peals of laughter.  
Draco Malfoy was called up not too long after. The hat hardly even touched his blond hair before he had sorted him into Slytherin. Draco went to go sit across from Harry with a wide smirk on his face. Theodore Nott and Pansy Parkinson were the next two to join them.  
Finally the Sorting started to dwindle to it's end. Ron Weasley was sent into Gryffindor with the rest of his family, and Harry realized that he would be in the same house as Hermione after all. Blaise Zabini was the last student after Ron and joined them in Slytherin.  
At this point, the Headmaster Dumbledore stood to address the school.  
"I would like to say a few words before we begin our glorious feast, and they are: . Oddement. Peak.  
"Thank you."  
The crowd began to clap and cheer as he sat down.  
"Is he mad?" Harry asked the older student beside him.  
"As a March Hare." He agreed. "Would you pass the potatoes?"  
Harry blinked and looked around at the food that had appeared from nowhere, and obligingly passed the upper year the dish.  
"My name is Flint. Marcus Flint. Slytherin Prefect and Captain of the Quidditch team." He said proudly. "Just come to me if you need anything."  
"I shall." Harry agreed, looking around for more familiar dishes, and being disappointed. He had to content himself with the bland, normal food.  
After a while of picking around at his dinner he gave it up as a bad job and started to look around. A lot of people were sending him frightened looks, including the youngest Weasley boy he had befriended and most of the staff. They tried to be subtle about their glances, save for one. The dark haired, hooked nosed Professor stared openly at him with a mixture of curiosity and loathing, ignoring the attempts of conversation by Professor Quirrel. Harry's scar started to burn as their eyes met each other. Harry didn't even acknowledge it. He had felt much worse.  
"Flint? Who is that by Professor Quirrel?" Harry asked, not taking his eyes off of the staring Professor's. Marcus looked up to see whom Harry was talking about.  
"That is Professor Snape. Our Head of House and Potions Master." He said. "I don't know why he is looking at you."  
Harry just shrugged as if it didn't matter, and pretended to go back to his food.  
Once everyone had eaten their fill, the Headmaster stood up again to cover several school rules and out of bounds areas such as the Forbidden Forest and the third floor corridor. Harry made a mental note to go and explore them as soon as possible.  
Then everyone was sent off to bed, and the Slytherin's followed the prefects into the dungeons. Everybody stopped at a stretch of blank stone wall and listened closely.  
"Wolfsbane." Marcus said clearly, and the wall began to melt away similar to the one at Diagon Alley. Everyone was ushered into the common room, and Harry took a look around. It was sleek and rather modern looking with black leather couches and fireplaces that warmed the entire place. Large windows covered the far wall, through which the green waters of the lake was visible. Harry thought he saw a tentacle before it disappeared into the murk. It gave the room an erie beauty that Harry was quite fond of.  
"First years take a seat." Marcus said. "The rest of you go on to your dorms."  
There was a moment of scuffle as the students complied, leaving to their rooms or claiming a space to sit. The moment all was quiet again, Professor Snape slipped into the common room, his robes flowing behind him. He said nothing as he came to a stop and eyed each of them in turn.  
"Welcome to Slytherin." He said at last in an oily voice. "A noble house of which most of you-" he sneered and his eyes fell again on Harry's, "-have heard about and aspired for your entire lives. Of course, our reputations with the other houses of this school has something to be desired. Know this. Whatever problems and petty squabbles you have with your housemates does not pass this room. Outside, we present a united front and protect our own. Alone we are vulnerable, but together Slytherin is a forced to be reckoned with. Do you understand?"  
There was a small chorus of "Yes, Professor Snape."  
"Curfew for first years is at nine o'clock, and you are to be in bed at lights out by nine thirty. Assignments are to be finished promptly and to the best of your ability. If I receive word that your work has yet to be turned in for any class I shall be most displeased." He continued. "You are required to use an hour of study time each day. Teachers and students shall help you if you require it. Other than that, you shall settle into Slytherin life quickly. Don't disappoint me."  
With that the head of Slytherin left in a swirl of robes, and they were directed to their new dorms. Harry crawled into the bed that had his things piled around it and drew the curtains shut. Hogwarts was going to be interesting.


	10. Potions Master

**I am sorry that it has been a while! I hope that this makes up for it!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family.**

Harry woke the next morning to the sound of girlish screams. He opened one eye to find that the perpetrator had been none other than Theodore Nott, who was staring in horror at Harry's bedside table. Thing was emerging from his box.

"What _is_ that thing!" Theo cried. His shouts had woken up the rest of the dorm mates, and now they craned their heads to see as well. All of them grew very pale.

"This is Thing." Harry said simply, very confused by their reactions. Thing waved at all of them. Nobody moved except Draco, who gave a very hesitant wave back.

"I don't have a letter yet." Harry told his little friend. "I wanted to go to class first, so I would have more to write about. You will tell the family I am alright, won't you?"

Thing gave a thumbs up in confirmation and disappeared back into his box. Harry looked over at his dorm mates, who were all staring at Thing's box in shock, as if they had never seen anything like it before.

"Well, shall we get some breakfast, then?" Harry asked.

...

Harry wrote to his family that night as promised, and planned to write again before the week was over. There was simply too much to wonder at in Hogwarts not to share.

The Addams' House had been great practice for Harry for traversing around the the castle. But while Harry was no stranger to trapdoors and hidden passageways, Hogwarts was of another calibre entirely. The staircases were fond of moving, so it was almost impossible to take the same route twice. There were several steps whose sole existence was to send unexpected students sprawling by swallowing their legs, and the doors could be just as difficult. Some only opened if you said a password, or asked it politely, or tickled it in just the right place. Many did not look like doors in the least, and sometimes you would come across a solid wall merely pretending to be a door. Nor was it any good to attempt to orient yourself with mere surroundings. The inhabitants of the paintings were always leaving their frames to visit one another, and Harry was certain the suits of armor could walk, even though he had yet to catch them in the act.

The foul caretaker Argus Filch and his cat, Mrs. Norris, patrolled the halls with an obsessed mania, frightening students left and right. Harry met him his very first day, when he and Draco had been attempting to get through a door that led to the forbidden third corridor. Harry had not known that at the time, but due to dear Mr. Filch, Harry was able to store the knowledge away for future use.

The bane of most students, even more so than Filch, was the Poltergeist by the name of Peeves. Theo swore that Peeves was worse than two locked doors and a trick staircase if you met him when you were late to class, but Harry didn't have such a problem. The troublesome spirit had only attempted to mess with the Addams once. Nobody was quite certain how Mrs. Norris' tail became tied to Peeve's tongue, but the poltergeist made quite sure to avoid Harry after that.

The lessons proved to be interesting as well. Every Wednesday at midnight they would go up to the Astronomy tower and learn the names of different stars and the movements of the planets, which was a subject Harry had not had the opportunity to learn before. Three times a week they went out to the greenhouses behind the castle to study Herbology, but Harry was a bit disappointed. After his mother's garden, these seemed a bit tame, and they would not be getting to the more dangerous plants until second year.

Easily the worst class was History of Magic. Harry thought it would be promising, since it was taught by a ghost, but Professor Binns had an uncanny knack for making wonderfully interesting things such as the bloody goblin rebellions sound as bout as interesting as stale bread.

Charms was taught by a teacher by the name of Professor Flitwick, who was so tiny that he had to stand on a pile of books to see over his desk. He had a vaguely goblin look about him. At the start of their first lesson he took the register, and when he reached Harry's name gave a squeak and toppled out of sight.

Professor McGonagall was strict and clever, and gave them a talking-to the moment they had first sat down in her class.

"Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts." She informed them. "Anyone messing around in my class will leave and not come back. You have been warned."

She showed off a bit by transforming her desk into a pig and back again, but the class was far from being able to do such feats. Instead they all took a rather lot of complicated notes before she gave them each a matchstick and and told them to begin trying to turn it into a needle. Despite Harry's previous experience with magic, he had never before tried to change the form of something, and the class was suitably challenging. By the end of the day, he and the Gryffindor Hermione were the only ones who had made any change to their matches. Hermione's had gone all silver and pointy at one end, which earned her a rare smile from McGonagall. Harry's, on the other hand, was black and resembled more of a thorn.

The Defense Against the Dark Arts with Professor Quirrell ended up being a joke. It was clear he had no idea what he was doing, and Harry became so annoyed with his stutter he imagined it was only a matter of time before he cut the man's tongue out. His classroom smelled strongly of garlic, which was rumored to be warding off a vampire he had run afoul of in Romania. His turban, he told them, was a thank you present from an African Prince for getting rid of a troublesome zombie, but when Gregory Goyle asked how he had gotten rid of it, the Professor went pink and started talking about the weather. Harry lost all respect for the man then. Everyone knows you kill a zombie by taking off its head. Harry had decapitated his first when he was seven. Wednesday had done it at the tender age of five.

Finally Friday came at last, and along with it the subject Harry had been most looking forward to. Potions. Draco was rather excited as well.

"Professor Snape is my godfather, you see." Draco explained for the third time that morning. "He always favors Slytherin, and absolutely hates Gryffindors. This might become my favorite class."

Harry did not answer. Despite being a Slytherin, he still had the feeling that Professor Snape did not like him.

Potions lessons took place down in one of the dungeons. It was colder here than up in the main castle, and would have been quite creepy enough without the pickled animals floating in glass jars all around the walls. Snape, like Flitwick, started the class by taking the roll call, and like Flitwick, he paused at Harry's name. Harry could see the tick under the man's eye, and had the feeling that he wanted to say something, but restrained himself due to his sense of House loyalty. He eventually reached the roll's end and spoke to the class at large.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion making," he began. He spoke in barely more than a whisper, but they caught every word — like Professor McGonagall, Snape had the gift of keeping a class silent without effort. "As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses… I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death — if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."

Harry hung on to every word. The Potions Master had the ability to make his speech sound like poetry. He was clearly very dedicated to his art, and Harry had the feeling that he was just the mentor he needed.

"Addams." Snape said suddenly. Harry already liked him. Most of the other teachers had attempted to call him Potter. "Where would you look if I asked you to find me a bezoar?"

"The gastrointestinal system, sir. Most often the stomach, and appears in horses, goats, and young children."

"And what is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?" The professor asked, an eyebrow cocked with interest.

Harry narrowed his eyes in thought for a moment. "There isn't one." He said at last. "They are the same plant, Aconite, or _Aconitum Napellus_."

"Very good. One last question. What would you get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?" Professor Snape inquired. Harry's mouth dropped and gaped at the imposing man.

"How do you know Grandmama's secret casserole recipe?"


	11. New Friends

**I am so so so sorry for the wait! Finals came around and bit me in the butt!Here is the next chapter, so please don't kill me!**

**BTW, the reference to Dean Thomas is in relation to his Boggart in the third book, which was -incidentally- a severed hand. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family. Please do not sue, college has taken all of my money...**

Professor Snape stood where he was, his eyes wide in surprise, for several seconds until he took control of his features again with a scowl. It looked as though only his loyalty to his house was keeping him from taking points away.

"I do not appreciate jokes, Mr. Addams, even in my own house." He said sternly. "Asphodel and an infusion of wormwood creates a sleeping draft so powerful it is known as The Draught of Living Death."

It did? That was news to Harry. The Professor barked at the class to take notes, and by the end of the class had started on creating a cure for boils. Harry was unsure why anyone would want to get rid of boils, but the task was easy enough, and he finished a full half hour before anyone else. Taking advantage of his extra time, Harry pulled out all of the notes he had made on his research for his poison, and approached the potions master.

"Yes, mister Addams, what is it?" He asked without looking up. He still sounded annoyed. Was it because Harry had not known the correct answer?

"I beg your pardon, sir." Harry said respectfully. "I just wished to show you my notes on a project of mine. I can't get it to work properly, you see, and I wondered if you would be able to assist me."

"You are supposed to be working on a Boil Cure, Mr. Addams."

"I finished sir." Harry said, placing a stoppered vial of his completed potion on the Professor's desk. Professor Snape looked at it critically, but finding no fault with it, turned to the notes Harry had given him. After several minutes, he spoke up again.

"Who has taught you in the art of potions, Mr. Addams?"

"My Grandmama."

The Professor's eye twitched very slightly as he remembered the casserole comment, and he looked over Harry with a stern eye, as if trying to figure out if the boy was making fun of him or not.

"I shall look over these notes more carefully later." He eventually promised, stowing the papers away and returning his attention to the class.

Despite Harry's rocky start with the Potions Master, for reasons he was still unclear about, Professor Snape seemed to rapidly grow fond of the Addams. The simple potions the boy brewed in class were always exemplary, and he was a great favorite to be called on in class due to his in depth knowledge of brewing and ingredients. Professor Snape also seemed to enjoy the way the Gryffindors squirmed when they spoke of more questionable potion items. The Professor had gone very carefully over the notes of Harry's concoction as he had promised, and within just a few weeks under of tutelage and inventive suggestions, Harry had perfected his poison.

Professor Snape had also proposed that Harry gift Professor Sprout with some of the pink goo he had accidentally discovered over the summer. She was quite pleased by how well it worked as a fertilizer for her more carnivorous plants.

The other teachers were not so amiable with him. Hagrid was nice enough, and invited him over for tea often, Binns ignored him as always, and Harry could care less about Quirrell, but from what he could tell, he set the other teachers on edge. They were all greatly impressed with his ability of course, but each time he made a reference to his home or family more and more of the teachers and students grew uneasy around him. They seemed horrified by the childhood games he had played such as _Wake the Dead_ and _Is There a God_. Flitwick had nearly fallen off of his chair when Harry asked if they would learn any sacrificial rituals, and not many of the Slytherins wanted to sit beside him at meal times anymore, ever since he had found the house elves and made his own dietary requests. They seemed to be unnerved that most of the food he ate moved and squealed.

Even more people were disturbed by the presence of Thing. The Gryffindor named Dean Thomas had practically run out of study hall screaming at the sight of him. It resulted in Harry having a confrontation with Professor McGonagall as she attempted to figure out what exactly Thing was.

"Did you charm this hand, Mr. Pot- Addams?" She corrected herself.

"No ma'am." Harry said, confused.

"Then who did?"

"I am not sure. He has been this way for as long as I can remember."

"He?" the professor asked. "It is sentient? You are not controlling it's actions?"

"Of course he is sentient! Thing is family!" Harry cried. The Transfiguration Professor stared at him for a long time before turning away, mumbling something about a calming drought and a stiff scotch.

...

"Draco."

"Mghphmm."

"Draco..."

"Mughamm!"

"Draco, get up."

"What?! What do you want, you infernal pile of gorgon dung?!" The ruffled haired blond eventually snapped. Harry chuckled. The Malfoy scion was very colorful when pulled away from his beauty sleep. He would have to remember that particular insult for later.

"Come on. We are going to go have a look around the third floor." He told him.

"Are you crazy? Do you know what time it is? And you woke me up for this of all things?" Draco hissed.

"Yes. For all accounts." Harry said. "Now come on or I will leave without you."

The blond Slytherin gave a mutinous grumble but the threat of missing out on something so interesting was enough to make him get out of bed and get dressed. He followed Harry out of the dungeons, cursing his own curiosity.

"Quiet now, Draco, or someone will catch us." Harry chided. His friend fell silent and neither of them said a word until they reached the door.

"What now?" Draco whispered, raising an eyebrow. "Last I checked, this door was still locked."

Harry did not bother to answer and pulled out his wand, making a motion in midair.

"_Alohamora_." he whispered, and the latch lifted with a click. "A dangerous, forbidden corridor that can be breeched by a first year spell. It is almost as if our dear headmaster wants us to have a look around." Harry mused.

"Could it be a trap then?" Draco asked. Harry shook his head.

"It could, but I am more inclined to think it is some sort of test. Come on."

Before Draco could ask Harry to elaborate, the Addams had pulled him inside. The Malfoy gave an immediate gasp and collapsed back on the doorframe, clutching at his heart. Harry understood his outrage. How could they!

He hurried to the Cerberus before it was fully awake, placing himself between two of the heads and scratching the magnificent beast behind the ears.

"You poor, poor thing!" Harry doted. "What are these horrible people thinking, keeping you locked up like this? Dogs are not supposed to be all cooped up."

The creature seemed stunned for a moment at the appearance of such a friendly visitor, but soon the eyes of the two heads Harry was patting lowered in content. The third head whined at the lack of attention.

"Come help me, will you Draco?" Harry called. "I can't reach that one."

Draco very slowly peeled himself off of the wall and made his way to the giant beast. With extremely tentative movements he began to scratch the third head. A loud, rhythmic thumping began to shake the floor and walls. The Cerberus was wagging his tail.

"Good boy." Harry praised.

"Harry... Check that out..."

Harry followed Draco's line of sight to see a trapdoor with a heavy iron ring handle between the dog's giant paws.

"Hmm. Guarding something, boy? I wonder what Dumbledore is up to." Harry said in soft contemplation.

"Should we check it out?" Draco asked.

"Not tonight. We don't have time, and we have no idea what's down there. I'd rather be as prepared as we can be." Harry said decisively. Draco looked rather relieved.

"Come on, lets go back to the dorm." Harry said, giving the Cerberus a last couple of pats. "I'll try to come visit you later, okay boy?"

The giant canine whined pitifully as the two boys departed, already missing his new friends.


	12. Halloween

**Here we are! Halloween! Warning, things get a little bit gross.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family. But I would give my right arm for either of them. **

Things were getting a lot more interesting at Hogwarts.

After the adventure with the Cerberus, Harry and Draco were quite keen to have another one. In the meantime, Harry told Draco about the occurrences on his trip to Gringrotts. Hagrid had visited the vault seven hundred and thirteen, which was later reported broken into by the Daily Prophet. It was announced that nothing was taken, as it had been emptied earlier the same day.

"Whatever he had taken, it must have been small, and there could not have been much in the vault." Harry said thoughtfully. "Otherwise we would have noticed."

"And you think that is what the dog is guarding?" Draco asked.

"Perhaps. Whatever it was, it was worth enough to someone to risk breaking in to Gringrotts."

"So... It must be either really powerful or really dangerous." said Draco.

"Or both."

But as they knew very little about what was taken from the vault that day, they did not have much of a chance of guessing what it was without more clues.

...

Harry could hardly believe it when he realized that he had been at the castle for two months already. He missed his family terribly, but the almost constant correspondence had helped keep the homesickness at bay. Pugsley and Uncle Fester were fascinated by the detailed reports of other student's magical mishaps Harry described for them, and he and Grandmama often traded potions notes. His Mama and Papa were proud of his progress no matter what he spoke to them about, and Wednesday's new ambition was to get their parents to agree to a Cerberus. ("They said they might consider it if we get a miniature breed." Wednesday confided in him. "They are much smaller than the one you saw, just about the hight of a Great Dane.")

The rapidity of passing time was aided by the increasing difficulty and interestingness of their lessons now that they had mastered the basics. Harry was often on a higher level than that of his classmates, but the teachers did their best to make the classes challenging. Professor McGonagall often required certain decorative touches to be added to his transfiguration, and Professor Snape was letting him brew more advanced potions.

But despite his enjoyable time at Hogwarts, Halloween did not start out as a good day for Harry. That morning everyone woke to the smell of baking pumpkin wafting through the corridors, which most thought pleasant, but Harry found abhorrent. Even worse, in Charms Professor Flitwick had announced that they were ready to start making objects fly. Most of the students had been looking forward to this since the tiny Professor sent Neville Longbottom's toad zooming around the classroom, but Harry had been able to levitate things without an enchantment or wand since he was three or four.

Professor Flitwick put the class in pairs to practice. Harry ended up with Theodore, and Draco with Blaise.

"Don't forget the nice wrist movement we have been practicing!" squeaked Flitwick, "Swish and flick, remember, swish and flick! And saying the magic words properly is important too. Never forget Wizard Baruffio, who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest."

Harry did not even attempt to make his feather fly. What was the point? Instead, he found himself watching the other students struggle with the task.

Ron Weasley was brandishing his wand in a manner that better suited throwing ninja stars than eliciting magic. Unfortunately his partner, who was the miss Hermione Granger, stopped him before he could make it explode, as Seamus Finnegan's feather did a few feet beyond them.

"Stop, stop, stop, you are going to take someones eye out." She chided. "Besides, you are saying it wrong. It's Wing-gar-dium Levi-o-sa, make the 'gar' nice and long."

"Lets see you do it then, if you are so clever." Ron challenged. Hermione patiently rolled up her sleeves, flicked her wand, and said clearly, "Wingardium Leviosa!"

The feather rose off the desk and hovered about four feet above their heads.

"Oh, well done!" cried Professor Flitwick, clapping. "Everyone see here, Miss Granger has done it!"

Ron Weasley seemed to be in a very bad mood the rest of the class.

...

The Great Hall looked the best Harry had ever seen it. A thousand live bats fluttered from the walls and ceiling while a thousand more were swooping over the tables in low black clouds, making the candles in the pumpkins stutter.

Harry was just helping himself to some food when Professor Quirrell came sprinting into the hall, his turban askew and terror on his face. Everyone stared as he reached Dumbledore's chair, slumped up against the table, and gasped, "Troll- In the dungeons- thought you ought to know."

And then he sank to the floor in a dead faint. Harry smiled as the rest of the students went into an uproar. If he was lucky, he might get to wrestle a troll after all. Several purple firecrackers from Dumbledore's wand were required to bring about silence once again.

"Prefects," He rumbled, "lead your Houses back to the dormitories immediately. Teachers, follow me."

"What, and we are just supposed to go back to the dungeons where the troll is?" Draco grumbled. Several other Slytherins seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"Well, then, I am going to go find it." Harry said quietly to Draco, slipping in the opposite direction amidst all of the confusion.

"Going to find the troll? Are you mad?" Draco hissed, following.

"Yes."

"You can't take on a troll by yourself!"

"If you wanted to come, all you had to do was say so."

Draco gave an indignant splutter.

"That's not what I- I did not mean- Isn't the troll supposed to be in the dungeon anyways? You are going in the wrong direction!"

"Use your nose, Draco." Harry sighed impatiently. The Malfoy gave a sniff and made a face at the putrid air. "It's been this way." Harry continued, walking on down the hall. They turned onto the far corridor, and almost ran directly into Ron Weasley.

"What are you doing here?" Draco and Ron hissed at the same time.

"I'm hunting the troll." Harry said amiably. Ron blinked in surprise at him before turning sheepish.

"I'm looking for Hermione." He admitted. "She overheard me talking about her after charms class, and I heard Lavender and Parvati say that she was in the bathroom crying. She wouldn't know about the troll, so I went to go warn her..."

"She would not happen to be in that bathroom, would she?" Harry asked, pointing over Ron's shoulder to the door that the ten foot mountain troll was shuffling it's way into. A shrill scream came not too long after. "Well, I guess that answers that." Harry said. "Lets go help her, shall we?"

Harry began to leisurely run in the direction to the bathroom. He didn't want Hermione to have all the fun. But when he and the other two boys rushed inside, Hermione was frozen against the far wall in fear, not attempting to vanquish the creature at all.

"Distract it!" Draco yelled, throwing a piece of wood from the shattered cubicles at the creature's head. It turned to look at him curiously, and he was forced to run for cover as the troll swung it's mighty club at him. Ron had gotten out his wand and shouted the first spell that came to him.

"Wingardium Leviosa!"

The troll tried to swing his club again, only to look down at his hand, puzzled as to why it was no longer there. It clattered against the far wall.

Draco had used this chance to get to Hermione, whom he was now trying to pry off the wall and push towards the door.

Harry, meanwhile, was crouched as far from the troll as he could get. He would need a running start, and the timing would have to be perfect.

"Now!" he murmured under his breath. Harry sprang to his feet and sprinted towards the monster before jumping up onto it's back. It made a grunting noise and looked wildly over its shoulders to see what had just taken hold of it, threatening to throw Harry off. He gritted his teeth and got a firm hold on his wand handle, before shoving the eight inches of wood up through the troll's vulnerable eye, angled so that it punctured the creature's brain as well. It gave a shudder and a last grunt before it fell to the ground with a heavy bang that echoed through the tiled room.

There was silence for several seconds as Harry pulled his wand free, wiping it free of the eye fluid and brain matter on the troll's pants.

"Is it- dead?" Hermione finally asked.

"Yes." Harry said, just as a sudden slamming and loud footsteps made them look toward the door. They must have raised a lot of commotion. A moment later, Professor McGonagall came bursting into the room, closely followed by Snape, with Quirrell bringing up the rear. The hare-hearted man took one look at the troll and leaned up against the sinks, clutching his heart with a whimper.

Professor Snape bent over the troll as Professor McGonagall stared down the students. Harry had never seen her so angry. Her lips were white, and the fire in her eyes could have sent fully grown Scotsman Warriors to the hills.

"It is dead." Professor Snape pronounced.

"D-d-dead?" Quirrell stuttered. The potions master merely nodded his head in affirmation.

"What on earth were you thinking of?" Professor McGonagall asked, a cold fury in her voice. "You were lucky you weren't killed! Why aren't you in your dormitory?"

"It was my fault, Professor."

Every head in the room turned to Ron, whose ears went red.

"I wasn't very nice to Hermione today, and because of it, she was up here instead of the feast. When I heard about the troll I had to let her know that it was dangerous. I thought about telling someone, but all of the teachers and upper years had gone to either help find it or escort the houses to the dorms..."

"And that was when he found Harry and I. " Draco cut in. "We were trying to catch someone's attention because we wanted to point out that our dorms were in the dungeons where the troll was supposed to be. When nobody would listen to us, we went with Ron to go tell Hermione, hoping that we would find a staff member to report to along the way."

"But everything happened so quickly after that." Ron said, picking up the thread of the story seamlessly. "We spotted the troll and were about to turn around for help when we heard Hermione scream. We didn't even have time to think of a plan. We had to go save her."

Harry had never heard a more beautifully crafted tale in his life. And the fact that both a Gryffindor and Slytherin had attested to the story had McGonagall convinced. Gryffindors and Slytherins only ever agreed with each other if the if the truth was irrefutable.

"Five points from Gryffindor for the mistreatment of a fellow housemate, Mr. Weasley." Professor McGonagall said finally. "And as for the rest of you- Not many first year students could take on a full grown mountain troll and live to tell the tale. Five points each to your houses. For sheer dumb luck."

"Luck?" Harry protested. His kill had taken a lot more than just luck! He was quickly silenced by Draco's swift kick, but not before Professor Snape had raised an eyebrow in the Addams' direction. Harry noticed the blood on his head of house's pant leg, but the potions master had followed his line of sight and covered it with the folds of his robe.

"Professor Snape and I will now escort you back to your houses. The feast is being continued in the dorms." Professor McGonagall said, ushering her two lions away.

"See you tomorrow, Ron? Hermione?" Harry called as he and Draco followed a limping Snape. The two Gryffindors looked surprised, but both smiled and nodded. There are some things you cannot share without ending up liking each other, and bringing down a twelve-foot mountain troll was one of them.


	13. Christmas

** Pardon my French (literally), I don't speak a word of it, so probably got some stuff wrong. Thanks to Kai19 for x-mas present ideas! I hope you enjoy it, and I apologize for the wait.**

** Disclaimer: I sadly do not own Harry Potter or the Addams Family.**

Harry and Draco became quite good friends with Ron and Hermione, to all of Hogwarts' surprise. It was unthinkable for respectable Slytherins- and a Malfoy, no less!- to ever be on agreeable terms with a Weasley or a muggleborn. And yet all four could be seen sitting together in the classes they shared, studying together, lounging around with each other, and enjoying the outdoors as a group. Ron had finally found a suitable wizards chess challenger in Draco, and Draco found a fellow Quidditch fan in Ron. They could often be seen arguing over the Chudley Cannons and the Tutshill Tornados while a couple of pawns wrestled on the chessboard between them. Harry's first impression of Hermione being a good ally was a good one. And she made an even better friend. She was quite smart; witty and clever, and a great one for conversation. She and Ron were especially intrigued by the Slytherin's adventure with the three-headed dog on the third floor.

"What on earth could they possibly be hiding?" Hermione asked.

Although the two new members of their band had plenty of theories to share, all of it was pure guesswork and speculation until they gained an unexpected clue from Hagrid. All four of them had come down to the gamekeeper's hut for tea, and Harry was using the time to play a game of tug-o-war with Fang using an old dishtowel.

"Good boy." Harry praised when the cloth finally ripped in half. "It's too bad we haven't been able to go visit that Cerberus, he's sure to be lonely. I'll bet he wants someone to-"

Harry was interrupted by the crash that ensued from Hagrid dropping the teapot.

"How do you know about Fluffy?" he asked.

"_Fluffy_?" Draco asked incredulously.

"Yeah- he's mine- bought him off a Greek chappie I met in the pub las' year- I leant him to Dumbledore to guard the-"

"Yes?" Ron prompted eagerly.

"Now, don't ask me anymore." said Hagrid gruffly. " That's top secret, that is. You listen to me, all four of yeh- yer meddlin' in things that don' concern yeh. It's dangerous. You forget that dog, forget what it is guardin', that's between Professor Dumbledore an' Nicolas Flamel-"

"Nicolas Flamel, hmm?" Harry asked.

Hagrid looked furious with himself.

...

"_Harry_!"

Harry consented to be crushed in the vice-like grip of his sister Wednesday, which was a true testimony to his love for her, since Wednesday had been known to crush pythons. It was finally winter break, and Harry had taken the train to King's Cross before apparating back home. He was hardly in the door before he was being attacked by _sa petite soeur_.

"Don't kill him, yet Wednesday, we want to see him too!" Pugsley protested.

"And he has to introduce us to his _charmant _friends." his mother pointed out, looking over the red-heads standing sheepishly in the doorframe.

Harry had discovered that the Weasley's were planning to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas while their parents went to Romania, and promptly invited all of them to stay in America with him. Ron and the twins had agreed, but Percy had declined, resolved to stay in school and help the teachers.

"Such a lovely shade of red." Mortisha cooed, running her hands through Ron's hair as the tips of his ears went pink. "When will we get to meet your other friends, _mon garcon_? The pale one and the girl?"

"Draco wanted to speak with his parents first, but he would like to visit the day before Christmas Eve. Hermione is off skiing." Harry explained.

"I am sure we will meet her soon." Gomez spoke up. "But first, I think, some introductions?"

"Of course, father. This is my friend Ron Weasley, and his older brothers Fred and George. If you can figure out which is which, all the power to you." Harry nodded. He had been able to detect the subtle differences between the twins enough to tell them apart, but they changed names so often that he had never been able to determine which name was assigned to which. Fred and George gave low bows and matching mischievous grins.

"A pleasure to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Addams-"

"-And we humbly thank you for extending your home to us during the holidays." they took turns saying.

"Erm, yeah. Thanks." Ron added, desperate to not seem rude.

"How charming!" Harry's mother smiled. "You must call me Mortisha. This is my husband Gomez-"

There was a small pause as Gomez shook all three of the boy's hands.

"My eldest, Pugsley, and my youngest Wednesday-"

They all shook hands with Pugs and the twins kissed the top of Wednesday's hand. Harry's sister looked at them with approval.

"Mama is in the kitchen whipping something up and-"

A loud explosion shook the house, cutting her off.

"And that was uncle Fester." Mortisha finished. The twins got a gleam in their eye akin to hero worship.

"Can we meet him?" They asked together.

"But of course!" Gomez smiled, pulling on a rope fashioned like a noose. A bell rang through the house that was not unlike the explosion that had just occurred.

"You raa-aang?" Lurch asked. All of the Weasley's jumped at the butler's appearance from no where.

"Hello Lurch. Would you mind showing our identical guests to their room, and then to meet Uncle Fester? They want to meet him properly."

"Follow meeee." Lurch told the twins before slowly shuffling out of the room.

"You are bunking with me." Harry told Ron. "Common, I'll show you to my room. Just leave your trunk here, Lurch will bring it up later."

He led Ron upstairs, and Wednesday followed like a dutiful sister. Of course, Harry knew that was not the case and wondered what she was up to. An extra bed had been set up for Ron beside Harry's, but Ron didn't seem to notice it. He was too surprised by Harry's own coffin-shaped one.

"This is your room?" he asked.

"Yep." Harry said proudly. "Isn't it great?"

"Erm... yeah..."

"Just don't open the closet." Wednesday grinned. "Some of my spiders have made it their home while you were away."

"Wednesday!" Harry groaned in annoyance at the same time Ron jumped in fright.

"S-sp-spiders!"

...

As it turned out, Ron had arachnophobia; the ludicrous fear of spiders. It caused Wednesday great mirth, who from that point on had made sure Ron saw one of her little pets every day. Fred and George grew very fond of her as a result, while Ron did not. Pugsley and Uncle Fester where also very fond of the twins. They had discovered that the two Weasley's were magical inventors, although none of their products had worked so far.

"All they do is blow up." The twin Harry thought was Fred sighed.

"And there are plenty of ways to make things blow up in the magical world." George continued.

Pugs and Uncle Fester couldn't really help them with the magic part (seeing as they had stayed as far away from it as they could once they realized Harry's effect on electricity)but they had plenty of ideas for the twins to add to their repertoire. Fred and George were als

o particularly pleased with the Addams' tradition of pouring hot wassail on carolers.

Pugsley and Gomez had also conspired together to help all three of the Weasley's learn a bit about swordplay. Wednesday was a lot more careful about where she left her spiders after Ron nearly killed one with a well thrown dagger. Harry had come to the conclusion that Ron and his sister would ever be good friends.

Mealtimes were another obstacle to overcome. Harry had already written to tell Grandmama to tone down her meals, since not everyone could digest the same way as the Addams could. She did her best, and the Weasley's seemed to enjoy it as long as their food did not move. Of course, there was still the casserole incident. Ron had avoided it, remembering Harry's outburst in class, but Fred and George had tucked in only to fall asleep after the first bite. Harry eventually had to send Thing to Hogwarts through his box with a letter for Professor Snape, asking for the antidote to the Draught of Living Death. It was to everyone's surprise when he visited them to personally administer it, making sure for himself that it had not been a joke.

After the twins had awoke, it took the Slytherin head of house an hour and a half to free himself from Grandmama's curious clutches. He had only been able to do so by promising the hag to send her copies of his complete potions notes.

...

Once Draco and his family arrived, the Addams' really did have a full house. Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy were on edge at first, Pureblood prejudices taking ahold of them. But soon they discovered the strange magic that the Addams' themselves had. Not quite the same as their own, but magic none the less. The Malfoys were more ill at ease with the presence of the Weasley's after that.

Gomez compared Lucius' cane to one of his own with a sword hidden in the handle, and Narcissa and Mortisha had found a similar passion for gardening. Mortisha was surprised that Narcissa actually let her roses blossom.

"I believe they are beautiful. Especially in a macabre way!" Narcissa had argued. "I would have thought that you would have allowed yours to bloom as well." She pulled out her wand and conjured a rose, just past its prime, so that the red petals were crusted over with black. Mortisha looked delighted with the effect.

"Perhaps next time I cut the flowers I will keep them a little longer until they are properly wilted." Mortisha conceded. "These truly are lovely once they begin to blacken like this... Oh, Narcissa, you truly do have a homemakers touch!"

"As do you, Mortisha dear, please _do_ tell me how you get your henbane to flourish-"

...

On Christmas morning it was just the Addams' and Weasleys again. The red heads had gotten their own pile of presents from their own family, including hand-knitted sweaters. Fred and George's had their initials on them, which they promptly swapped to illicit more confusion. They only responded to Gred and Forge for the rest of the day.

The Addams' had given the twins a pair of their very own axes and Ron a dagger for himself.

"This is wicked!" Ron had cried, trying it out by throwing it at Wednesday, who ducked with a scowl.

"I picked it out." Harry boasted.

"It's perfect mate!"

"These are so sweet!" Fred grinned, running his thumb along the blade.

"Thanks!" George agreed, clearly itching to try his out.

"Will we be allowed to take these with us to Hogwarts?" Ron suddenly asked with a frown.

"They never said anything about my weapons." Harry shrugged, causing his red-headed friend to beam again.

The others opened their own presents. Harry had managed to transfigure a model train of the Hogwarts express for his father, the remaining eye and brains of the slain troll for Grandmama, and smuggled out some Venomous Tentatctula seeds for his mother. There were some Dungbombs for Uncle Fester, and an assortment of Harry's favorite candies for Wednesday and Pugsley that Harry had been able to get by bribing a third year to purchase from Hogsmeade. Lurch was given a bottle of _Ms. Skowers All-Purpose Magical Mess Remover_ Harry had relieved from Filtch to make the butler's life easier, and he gave Thing a cushion of his own to sleep on, charmed to be extra soft.

Harry was not only given presents from his family, but was sent a wooden flute from Hagrid, a book of magical creatures (with the cerberus highlighted) from Hermione, and a large assortment of Harry's favorite candy from Draco. Harry had left his own gifts with them, since he was not sure he would be able to send them the presents otherwise.

"There is one left!" Wednesday cried, pulling it into view. Then she pouted. "Oh, it's for you, Harry."

Harry looked over the unsigned note curiously.

_Harry,_

_Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time that it was returned to you. _

_Use it well._

Intrigued, Harry opened the box to find a silvery cloak inside. Ron gasped as Harry held it up for closer inspection.

"I know what that is! It's an invisibility cloak! They're really rare-"

"Rare? I'd give my left buttock for one!" George said, looking at it with admiration. Harry slipped the cloak over his shoulders in curiosity, and his body disappeared.

"This is going to be very fun..." Harry agreed with a grin.


	14. Dragon

**I am so sorry for the wait, you guys. I had to wait until I got back to school to update because my father lives in the stone age and does not have internet yet. (Hopefully that is something that will be corrected soon) It is longer than usual to make up for it. Thank you for your patience and enjoy the chapter. Especially you, Mel. **

**Disclaimer: I sadly do not own the rights to the Addams Family or Harry Potter. Please don't sue me. **

"Well well well." Harry murmured to himself. "Take a look at this."

The Christmas holidays were over, and the Addams boy found himself sitting in the library with his friends as they did their homework. Well, Hermione did her homework. Harry had one of his books from home open in front of him, and Draco and Ron were messing around, playing a game they made up themselves. It involved wads of balled up parchment, Ron's throwing knife, and betting chocolate frog cards. Harry was glad that the Weasleys had been clever enough to sneak in their weapons. Professor Snape had to buy a new desk twice since he had started coming into his classroom to find his desk chopped to splinters. Now the security was so tight on the room that it would even pose a problem for Dumbledore if he wanted to get in without permission.

Harry's friends looked to what he held in his hand.

"Mate... That is a chocolate frog card." Draco said slowly, as if his friend had finally snapped. Or, snapped more than usual, in any case.

"I know that Draco. Do give me some credit." Harry sighed.

Draco looked over his friend's shoulder. It was a Dumbledore card, nothing rare or exciting about it.

"And what is so fascinating about this particular card, may I ask?"

"Because this card claims that Dumbledore worked with a man named Nicholas Flammel. How could I be so stupid. Here I am, racking my brains of everyone I learned about in the wizarding world, when I in fact heard of him at home."

"Wait, you learned about Nicholas Flammel while you weren't in the wizarding world?" Ron asked. "But how? The Statute of Secrecy-"

"Nicholas Flammel was a great name of Alchemy." Harry explained. "Even for muggles. But a lot of 'stories' around him center around his quest for making a stone that could change metal to gold and produce an elixir to extend life."

"You think that is what the dog is guarding?" Hermione asked after a gasp of understanding.

"But you said that they were just muggle stories." Draco said.

"But in order for Nicholas Flammel to be Dumbledore's partner he would have to be over six hundred and fifty years old." Harry explained. "And he had to have something to help keep him alive that long."

Hermione jumped up and down in her seat in excitement before dashing off down an aisle of books. Ron and Draco looked annoyed at her disappearance, but Harry waited patiently until she had returned with a thick tome.

"I can't believe I did not think of this! I looked at this book weeks ago- here it is!" She said as she found the correct page. "Nicholas Flammel is the only known maker of the philosophers stone! It is true!"

"So Fluffy is guarding it? I suppose it fits..." Ron agreed.

"And it makes sense why it would be in danger. Everybody would want to steal a stone that could give unlimited gold and life." Draco nodded. "But why would they move it to Hogwarts now?"

"Because of me." Harry said.

All of his friends looked at him.

"Er, no offense mate, but, not everything is about you." Ron shrugged. He then had to duck as Harry snatched up Ron's dagger and playfully threw it in his direction.

"Perhaps it is presumptuous for me to assume so." Harry agreed as Ron yanked the imbedded blade from the wooden bookshelf behind his head. "But as I said before, it seems a little too convenient that an extremely powerful object was placed in the castle behind security measures that can be broken by first years, which will attract those willing to steal it, and all in the first year that the Boy-Who-Lived comes to Hogwarts. I suppose it is just my suspicious nature, but I feel like Dumbledore is trying to test me. See how I fare playing the hero."

"But you are only eleven!" Hermione protested.

"Your point? All is fair in death and war." Harry said.

"Erm, don't you mean love and war?" Ron asked.

"Love falls under both categories." Harry explained to his friend patiently.

"But you aren't going to do it, are you? Be Dumbledore's hero, I mean." Draco asked.

"Of course not. Where would the fun be in that?"

...

Harry spent a lot of his time after hours sneaking around in the new cloak that was given to him. He suspected that Dumbledore had sent it, and that it was to help him with whatever test the headmaster was planning, but he was Slytherin enough to know not to look a gift horse in the mouth. He made the most of his gift by exploring every inch of the castle that he could, and going to visit Fluffy regularly. The poor thing basked in the attention.

It was during one of his nighttime trips that he came across a rather remarkable mirror. He had to duck into an unused classroom to get away from Mrs. Norris (whom seemed to be able to see him despite his cloak) and found that the only thing uncovered by dusty sheets was the mirror in its gilded frame. The words _Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi_ crested the top. Harry spent several moments attempting to decipher what language it was in before he realized it was not in another language at all. It was just backwards, with odd spacing._ I show not your face but your hearts desire_. Harry looked into the glass, but instead of reflecting his image, the mirror acted like a window peering into the Addams' family graveyard. It looked like a large revel of some kind. People were dancing the waltz to a gothic tune, children were playing Wake-The-Dead, and there was a long buffet of the most dreadfully delicious foods... Torches and bonfires burned everywhere, and several rituals were being preformed off to the side. He recognized some of the attendees, family members and friends, but several people he did not know at all. All he knew was that he wanted to join in so badly that he was tempted to break the mirror to see if the frame could act as a type of doorway. He eventually pulled himself away through sheer will, but when he returned the next night to see it again, the mirror had gone.

...

Harry believed that Hermione could make a fine living as a quartermaster, if she felt so inclined to pursue the career. Not even he had dared stand up to her once she let loose. Within less than five minutes Hermione had all three boys organizing their notes and making study schedules.

"Hermione, the exams are ages away." Ron complained.

"Ten weeks." She snapped, causing the red-head to flinch. "That's not ages, that is like a second to Nicholas Flammel."

"But we are not six hundred years old." he pressed on, and Harry had to admire his bravery. "Anyway, what are you studying for, you already know it all."

"What am I studying for? Are you crazy? You realize that we need to pass these exams to get into second year? They're very important, I should have started studying a month ago, I don't know what has gotten into me-"

Ron frowned at his notes as she continued to rant.

"I'll never remember all of this." He mumbled to himself. "Why even bother?"

"Ronald Weasley, you will study if I have to tie you to that chair!" Hermione growled.

Perhaps she would make a good dominatrix too.

"Hagrid? What are you doing here?" Draco asked, causing the others to look up. The large man shuffled into view holding something behind his back.

"Jus' lookin'," He said in a shifty voice that got their interest at once. "An' what're you lot up ter?" He looked suddenly suspicious. "Yer not still looking for Nicholas Flammel, are yeh?"

"Oh, we found out who he is ages ago." said Ron impressively. "And we know that the dog is guarding a Philosopher's St-"

"Shhh!" Hagrid looked around quickly to see if anyone was listening. "Don' go shoutin' about it, what's the matter with yeh?"

"There are a few things we wanted to ask you, as a matter of fact." Harry spoke up. "About what is guarding the Stone apart from Fluffy-"

"SHHH!" Hagrid said again. "Listen- come an' see me later, I'm not promisin' I'll tell yeh anythin', mind, but don' go rabbitin' about it here, students aren't s'pposed ter know. They'll think I've told yeh-"

"We will come see you later then." Harry agreed.

Hagrid shuffled off.

"What was he hiding behind his back?" Hermione wondered.

"Lets check the section he was in." Ron said, getting up. He came back a moment later with an armful of books.

"Dragons!" he whispered. "Hagrid was looking up stuff about dragons! Look at these: _Dragon Species of Great Britain and Ireland; From Egg to Inferno, A Dragon Keeper's Guide_."

"Hagrid told me he always wanted a dragon." Harry said, growing excited.

"But it is against the law." said Ron. "Dragon breeding was outlawed by the Warlocks convention of 1709, everyone knows that. It's hard to stop muggles from noticing us if we're keeping dragons in the back garden- anyway, you can't tame dragons, it's dangerous. You should see some of the burns Charlie's got off wild ones in Romania."

"I bet Wednesday would like to look. But burn wounds are much better fresh-"

"But if it is illegal, then what is Hagrid up to?" Hermione asked.

...

When they knocked on the door of the gamekeeper's hut an hour later, they were surprised to see that all the curtains were closed. Hagrid called "Who is it?" before he let them in, and then shut the door quickly behind was stifling hot inside. Even though it was such a warm day, there was a blazing fire in the grate. Hagrid made them tea and offered them stoat sandwiches, which Draco, Ron, and Hermione refused. Harry took two.

"So — yeh wanted to ask me somethin'?"

"Yes," said Harry. There was no point beating around the bush. "We were wondering if you could tell us what's guarding the Philosopher's Stone apart from Fluffy."

Hagrid frowned at him.

"O' course I can't," he said. "Number one, I don' know meself. Number two, yeh know too much already, so I wouldn' tell yeh if I could. That Stone's here fer a good reason. It was almost stolen outta Gringotts — I s'ppose yeh've worked that out an' all? Beats me how yeh even know abou' Fluffy."

"Oh, come on, Hagrid, you might not want to tell us, but you do know, you know everything that goes on round here," said Hermione in a warm, flattering voice. Hagrid's beard twitched and they could tell he was smiling. Hermione was quite the little Slytherin. "We only wondered who had done the guarding, really." Hermione went on. "We wondered who Dumbledore had trusted enough to help him, apart from you."

Hagrid's chest swelled at these last words. The boys gave Hermione a smile.

"Well, I don' s'pose it could hurt ter tell yeh that… let's see… he borrowed Fluffy from me… then some o' the teachers did enchantments… Professor Sprout — Professor Flitwick — Professor McGonagall —" he ticked them off on his fingers, "Professor Quirrell — an' Dumbledore himself did somethin', o' course. Hang on, I've forgotten someone. Oh yeah, Professor Snape."

Harry nodded and committed the list to memory.

"Hagrid, can we have a window open? I'm boiling." Draco said, pulling at his collar.

"Can't, Draco, sorry," said Hagrid with a look towards the fire. The others followed his gaze.

"Hagrid — what's that?" Harry asked with ever larger growing excitement. He already knew what it was. In the very heart of the fire, underneath the kettle, was a huge, black egg.

"Ah," said Hagrid, fiddling nervously with his beard, "That's — er…"

"Where did you get it, Hagrid?" said Ron, crouching over the fire to get a closer look at the egg. "It must've cost you a fortune."

"Won it," said Hagrid. "Las' night. I was down in the village havin' a few drinks an' got into a game o' cards with a stranger. Think he was quite glad ter get rid of it, ter be honest."

"I wonder why." Harry mused. Who wouldn't want such a treasure?

"But what are you going to do with it when it's hatched?" said Hermione.

"Well, I've bin doin' some readin'," said Hagrid, pulling a large book from under his pillow. "Got this outta the library —Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit — it's a bit outta date, o' course, but it's all in here. Keep the egg in the fire, 'cause their mothers breathe on I em, see, an' when it hatches, feed it on a bucket o' brandy mixed with chicken blood every half hour. An' see here — how ter recognize diff'rent eggs — what I got there's a Norwegian Ridgeback. They're rare, them." He looked very pleased with himself, but Hermione didn't.

"Hagrid, you live in a wooden house," she said.

But Hagrid wasn't listening. He was humming merrily as he stoked the fire.

"Wonder what it's like to have a peaceful life," Ron sighed that evening as they trudged up to the castle.

"Very boring." Harry said with a wise nod.

...

Amidst all of the studying and extra work being assigned, there came a morning when Thing delivered Harry a note from Hagrid durning breakfast. He had only written two words: _It's hatching_.

Ron wanted to skip Herbology and go straight down to the hut. Hermione wouldn't hear of it.

"Hermione, how many times in our lives are we going to see a dragon hatching?"

"We've got lessons, we'll get into trouble, and that's nothing to what Hagrid's going to be in when someone finds out what he's doing—"

Harry nudged them both as a group of students began to walk their way. He didn't want any passersby to overhear.

Ron and Hermione argued all the way to Herbology and in the end, Hermione agreed to run down to Hagrid's with the other three during morning break. When the bell sounded from the castle at the end of their lesson, the three of them dropped their trowels at once and hurried through the grounds to the edge of the forest. Hagrid greeted them, looking flushed and excited.

"It's nearly out." He ushered them inside.

The egg was lying on the table. There were deep cracks in it. Something was moving inside; a funny clicking noise was coming from it. They all drew their chairs up to the table and watched with bated breath. All at once there was a scraping noise and the egg split open. The baby dragon flopped onto the table. Harry thought it was the most majestic thing he had ever seen, even though it was still young enough to have a resemblance to a crumpled, black umbrella. Its spiny wings were huge compared to its skinny jet body, it had a long snout with wide nostrils, the stubs of horns and bulging, orange eyes. It sneezed. A couple of sparks flew out of its snout.

"Isn't he beautiful?" Hagrid murmured. He reached out a hand to stroke the dragon's head. It snapped at his fingers, showing pointed fangs. "Bless him, look, he knows his mummy!"

"Oh Hagrid, he is wonderful!" Harry agreed with a widening smile. The others were not so impressed.

...

They continued to try to get Hagrid to give him up as the next week progressed.

"Just let him go. Set him free." Ron urged.

"I can't," said Hagrid. "He's too little. He'd die."

They looked at the dragon. It had grown three times in length in just a week. Smoke kept furling out of its nostrils. Hagrid hadn't been doing his gamekeeping duties because the dragon was keeping him so busy. There were empty brandy bottles and chicken feathers all over the floor.

"I've decided to call him Norbert," said Hagrid.

"That's a nice name." Harry nodded, although he personally would have gone with something different. But this was a man who named a Cerberus Fluffy. The name Norbert was practically elegant in comparison.

"Hagrid," said Hermione loudly, "give it two weeks and Norbert's going to be as long as your house. Someone is bound to notice any day now."

Hagrid bit his lip.

"I — I know I can't keep him forever, but I can't jus' dump him, I can't."

"Why don't you ask your brother Charlie if he can take him?" Harry asked, turning to Ron.

"Brilliant!" said Ron. "How about it, Hagrid?"

And in the end, Hagrid agreed that they could send an owl to Charlie to ask him.

...

The following week dragged by. Wednesday night found Hermione, Draco, and Harry sitting alone in the communal study room available to all houses, long after everyone else had gone to their common rooms. The clock on the wall had just chimed nine when the door burst open. Ron appeared out of nowhere as he pulled off Harry's invisibility cloak. He had been down at Hagrid's hut, helping him feed Norbert, who was now eating dead rats by the crate.

"It bit me!" he said, showing them his hand, which was wrapped in a bloody handkerchief. "I'm not going to be able to hold a quill for a week. I tell you, that dragon's the most horrible animal I've ever met, but the way Hagrid goes on about it, you'd think it was a fluffy little bunny rabbit. When it bit me he told me off for frightening it. And when I left, he was singing it a lullaby."

"Well you can't blame a dragon for biting you if you startled it." Harry said.

"Oh, piss off Harry." Ron grumbled half-heartedly, distracted by a tap on the window. Draco's eagle owl had brought Charlie's reply. Hermione rushed to let the bird in and they all crowded around to read it together.

_Dear Ron,_

_How are you? Thanks for the letter — I'd be glad to take the Norwegian Ridgeback, but it won't be easy getting him here. I think the best thing will be to send him over with some friends of mine who are coming to visit me next week. Trouble is, they mustn't be seen carrying an illegal dragon. Could you get the Ridgeback up the tallest tower at midnight on Saturday? They can meet you there and take him away while it's still dark. Send me an answer as soon as possible._

_Love, _

_Charlie. _

They all looked at one another.

"We've got the invisibility cloak," said Harry. "It should be easy – I think the cloaks big enough to cover two of us and Norbert."

The others agreed without complaint. They were not as attached to Norbert as Harry was.

...

There was a hitch. By the next morning, Ron's bitten hand had swollen to twice its usual size. He didn't know whether it was safe to go to Madam Pomfrey — would she recognize a dragon bite? By the afternoon, though, he had no choice. The cut had turned a nasty shade of green. It looked as if Norbert's fangs were poisonous. Harry made certain to collect as much pus from the wound as he could before Ron went to the hospital wing.

"At least it will all be over soon." He said when his friends came to visit him that evening.

...

They found Fang, the boarhound, sitting outside with a bandaged tail when they went to tell Hagrid, who opened a window to talk to them.

"I won't let you in," he puffed. "Norbert's at a tricky stage — nothin' I can't handle."

Harry pouted a bit at not being able to visit the baby properly while Draco and Hermione told Hagrid about Charlie's letter. His eyes filled with tears, although that might have been because Norbert had just bitten him on the leg.

"Aargh! It's all right, he only got my boot — jus' playin' — he's only a baby, after all."

The baby banged its tail on the wall, making the windows rattle.

...

Saturday gave way to a very dark, cloudy night, and Harry and Hermione were a bit late arriving at Hagrid's hut because they'd had to wait for Peeves to get out of their way in the entrance hall, where he'd been playing tennis against the wall. They had decided that Draco would be the one to stay behind, since Hermione and Harry were the best at calming Norbert. Or, getting him as calm as a dragon could be, at any rate. Draco was a bit put out by it, but he had agreed in the end.

Hagrid had Norbert packed and ready in a large crate when they finally reached his hut.

"He's got lots o' rats an' some brandy fer the journey," said Hagrid in a muffled voice. "An' I've packed his teddy bear in case he gets lonely."

From inside the crate came ripping noises that sounded as though the teddy was having his head torn off.

"Bye-bye, Norbert!" Hagrid sobbed, as Harry and Hermione covered the crate with the invisibility cloak and stepped underneath it themselves. "Mummy will never forget you!"

Midnight ticked nearer as they heaved Norbert to the castle, up the marble staircase in the entrance hall, and along the dark corridors. Up another staircase, then another – even one of Harry's shortcuts that he had found didn't make the work much easier.

"Nearly there!" Harry as they reached the corridor beneath the tallest tower.

Then a sudden movement ahead of them made Hermione almost drop her end of the crate. They stared at the dark outlines of two people grappling with each other ten feet away. A lamp flared. Professor McGonagall, in a tartan bathrobe and a hair net, had Draco by the ear.

"Detention!" she shouted. "And twenty points from Slytherin! Wandering around in the middle of the night, how dare you —"

Draco remained tight lipped and said nothing. Harry held back a groan. He had obviously come to try and help them, and ended up just being caught instead.

"Come on — I shall see Professor Snape about you, Malfoy!" The Scottish Professor said, pulling Draco along by his ear. They stayed still until the pair were out of earshot.

"Oh, Draco-" Hermione said in one part pity, one part annoyance, and one part angry. "Why couldn't he just stay in the dorms?"

"We can't worry about it now." Harry said, and they continued to climb to the top of the tower. Once they reached the top and stepped out into the cold night air they threw off the cloak, glad to be able to breathe properly again. They waited in silence, Norbert thrashing about in his crate. About ten minutes later, four broomsticks came swooping down out of the darkness.

Charlie's friends were a cheery lot, and Harry wasn't sure if he liked them or not. They all helped buckle Norbert safely into harness they'd rigged up, so they could suspend Norbert between them. Then Harry and Hermione shook hands with the others and thanked them. At last, Norbert was going… going… gone.

Harry gave a disappointed sigh while Hermione gave one of relief, and then they slipped back down the spiral staircase.

The moment they stepped into the corridor, Filch's face loomed suddenly out of the darkness towards them.

"Well, well, well," he whispered, "we are in trouble."

They'd left the invisibility cloak on top of the tower.


	15. Forest

**I'm sorry about the wait guys. School is murder. **

**And several people have asked that I deviate from canon more than I have. Well, I can't at the moment. First and Fourth years will be very similar to canon, but we will get more variety in the other years to come. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or The Addams Family.**

"The Forbidden Forest?" Draco asked, looking at the decrepit caretaker in disbelief. "I thought that was a joke! We can't go in there! There are werewolves!" A distant howl punctuated his words to prove his point.

"That's your problem, isn't it?" asked Filch, his voice cracking with glee. "You should have thought about them werewolves before you got in trouble, shouldn't you?"

"Oh honestly, Draco, it isn't even the full moon." Hermione scoffed, "And don't even think about it, Harry."

Harry's face- which had been slowly brightening at the thought of werewolves- crashed into a pout as Hagrid came striding toward them out of the dark, Fang at his heel. He was carrying his large crossbow, and a quiver of arrows hung over his shoulder.

"Abou' time," he said. "I bin waitin' fer half an hour already. All right, you lot?"

"I shouldn't be too friendly to them, Hagrid," said Filch coldly, "they're here to be punished, after all."

"Which I don't understand." Harry cut in. "How can something as cool as this be a punishment?"

"That's why yer late, is it?" said Hagrid, frowning at Filch. "Bin lecturin' them, eh? 'Snot your place ter do that. Yeh've done yer bit, I'll take over from here."

"I'll be back at dawn," said Filch, "for what's left of them," he added nastily, in a last attempt to instill fear into the fearless Addams. It didn't work. The caretaker sniffed and started back toward the castle, his lamp bobbing away in the darkness.

"Right then," said Hagrid, "now, listen carefully, 'cause it's dangerous what we're gonna do tonight, an' I don' want no one takin' risks. Follow me over here a moment." He led them to the very edge of the forest. Holding his lamp up high, he pointed down a narrow, winding earth track that disappeared into the thick black trees. A light breeze lifted their hair as they looked into the forest.

"Look there," said Hagrid, "see that stuff shinin' on the ground? Silvery stuff? That's unicorn blood."

Harry looked at it in interest. It fascinated him. He liked the look of human blood better, but the beauty of the substance before him seemed to enhance it's disturbing nature. Hagrid continued on.

"There's a unicorn in there bin hurt badly by summat. This is the second time in a week. I found one dead last Wednesday. We're gonna try an' find the poor thing. We might have ter put it out of its misery."

"How _charmant_." Harry said.

"Keep ter the path. Right, now, we're gonna split inter two parties an' follow the trail in diff'rent directions. There's blood all over the place, it must've bin staggerin' around since last night at least. Draco, Harry, you go with Fang. Yeh come with me, Hermione. If any of us finds the unicorn we will send up green sparks, an' if anyone gets in trouble, send up red sparks, an' we'll come an' find yah- so be careful- let's go."

Harry filled up two potion's flask with the substance while Hagrid's back was turned, and then followed the giant man into the trees with the others.

The forest was black and silent. A little way into it they reached a fork in the earth path, and Hermione, and Hagrid took the left path while Draco, Harry, and Fang took the walked in silence, and Harry took in everything from the overgrown branches to the twisting roots. It reminded him of the swamp behind the graveyard back home, but this forest was much older, and much more stunning, intensified every now and then when a ray of moonlight through the branches above lit a spot of silver-blue blood on the fallen leaves.

The perfect atmosphere was only ruined by Draco's constant grumbling.

"Draco, will you please stop whining?"

"I am not whining!" the scion protested. "I am merely saying that detentions should not put students in more danger than they were in to begin with-"

"Draco, shut up!"

"Well of all the-!" The blonde was cut off by Harry's hand placed over his mouth.

"Shush! I thought I heard something!"

Draco froze and became silent. Harry stepped closer to the sound, dragging his friend with him. Just beyond the next bend gave way to a small clearing, where the unicorn was sprawled at the far end. The very whiteness of it hurt Harry's eyes. In contrast, a dark figure stood over it, drinking it's fill of the silvery blood from the creature's neck. Draco screamed and pulled himself out of Harry's grip, running away alongside a howling Fang. Harry stood where he was, intrigued by the figure as it's hood raised and looked in Harry's direction. Neither of them moved for a moment, none afraid of the other. It had just taken a step in Harry's direction when something burst from the trees, brandishing it's hooves and driving the creature away.

Harry turned his eye to his 'rescuer'. A palomino centaur, half man, half horse, stood over him.

"Are you alright?" The creature asked.

"Fine." Harry said honestly. "What was that thing?"

The centaur didn't answer. He just looked carefully at Harry, his eyes lingering on the scar that stood out; livid against his forehead.

"You are the Potter boy. The one that now goes by a different name."

"Addams." Harry informed him. He merely nodded.

"You had better get back to Hagrid. The forest is not safe at this time — especially for you. Can you ride? It will be quicker this way. My name is Firenze," he added, as he lowered himself on to his front legs so that Harry could mount.

"A pleasure." Harry said as two more centaurs thundered into the clearing.

"Ronan. Bane." Firenze said, giving a nod to each respective one. They were not so polite in their greeting.

"Firenze!" the one called Bane thundered. "What are you doing? You have a human on your back! Have you no shame? Are you a common mule?"

"Do you realize who this is?" said Firenze. "This is the Potter- now Addams- boy. The quicker he leaves this forest, the better."

What have you been telling him?" growled Bane. "Remember, Firenze, we are sworn not to set ourselves against the heavens. Have we not read what is to come in the movements of the planets?"

Ronan pawed the ground nervously. "I'm sure Firenze thought he was acting for the best," he said in a gloomy voice. Bane kicked his back legs in anger.

"For the best! What is that to do with us? Centaurs are concerned with what has been foretold! It is not our business to run around like donkeys after stray humans in our forest!"

Firenze suddenly reared on to his hind legs in anger, so that Harry had to grab his shoulders to stay on.

"Do you not see that unicorn?" Firenze bellowed at Bane. "Do you not understand why it was killed? Or have the planets not let you in on that secret? I set myself against what is lurking in this forest, Bane, yes, with humans alongside me if I must."

And Firenze whisked around; with Harry riding astride him, they plunged off into the trees, leaving Ronan and Bane behind them.

Harry was not sure what had just occurred, but he loved riddles. He would find out eventually.

Firenze finally slowed to a walk, and when they were passing through a particularly dense patch of trees, Firenze stopped.

"Harry Addams, do you know what unicorn blood is used for?"

"No." Harry admitted. Although it would be a good thing to learn, since he now had two vials of it resting in his cloak.

"It is a monstrous thing, to slay a unicorn," said Firenze. "Only one who has nothing to lose, and everything to gain, would commit such a crime. The blood of a unicorn will keep you alive, even if you are an inch from death, but at a terrible price. You have slain something pure and defenseless to save yourself, and you will have but a half-life, a cursed life, from the moment the blood touches your lips."

Harry wrinkled his nose. He could deal with a cursed life, but why would anyone want to stay alive? To die would be an awfully wonderful thing.

"Who would want that?" He asked the centaur.

"Can you think of no one? Do you know what is hidden in the school at this very moment? Can you think of nobody who has waited many years to return to power, who has clung to life, awaiting their chance?"

"I assume you mean Lord Voldemort. I suppose he would fit the bill-" Harry nodded.

"Harry! Harry, are you alright?"

Hermione was running toward them down the path, Hagrid and Draco puffing along behind her.

"I'm fine," Harry said honestly, "The unicorn's dead, Hagrid, it's in that clearing back there."

"This is where I leave you," Firenze murmured as Hagrid hurried off to examine the unicorn. "You are safe now."

Harry smoothly dismounted.

"Good luck, Harry Addams," said Firenze. "The planets have been read wrongly before now, even by centaurs. I hope this is one of those times."

...

That night when Harry pulled back his sheets, he found his invisibility cloak folded neatly underneath them. There was a note pinned to it:

_Just in case. _

Dumbledore was most certainly up to something.


	16. Stone

**Disclaimer: I don't own...**

"I think I am going to go see Fluffy." Harry said with a stretch as he stood from the library table. Thing scuttled around the desk, helping the Addams gather his books, parchment, and quills. Hermione gave Harry a disapproving look.

"You should be studying, Harry. Exams are next week!"

"I am ready for them, Hermione. Besides, we have been studying for hours. I think I deserve a break."

"That's a great idea." Ron said, pushing his book away. "Lets all take a break."

All it took was one glare from Hermione to make him pull his book back meekly and crouch over it in a studious manner. Hermione turned back to Harry to chide him into studying again, only to find that he had taken the opportunity to vanish.

"I am going to kill that boy one day." She sighed.

...

"Hello Fluffy!" Harry said, making sure to pat all three heads so that none of them felt left out. "How is my favorite puppy? I bet you miss being outside, don't you? Are they feeding you enough?"

Fluffy gave no sign of understanding and just wagged his tail at his friend, glad for the company. At least the year was almost over, and the cerberus could be moved to a place more desirable for a giant dog.

But then again, what if he wasn't?

Harry frowned in thought. He was not positive that Dumbledore would remove Fluffy when the summer came if that stupid stone stayed safe.

There was only one thing to do.

"I am going to go down the trapdoor, okay?" Harry told his four-legged friend. Fluffy just looked back at him, his heads cocked at different angles in interest.

"I'll be back." Harry assured him as he forced the trapdoor open. "I'm just going to help get you out of here. Be a good boy until I get back."

The cerberus whined, sensing that his friend was about to leave.

"Ready Thing?" Harry asked the hand as it crawled out of his bag and onto his shoulder. Thing gave a thumbs up.

"Hold on!" Harry warned him as he jumped through the opening in the floor. He continued to fall for several long seconds before he landed on something springy. From what he could tell, it was a plant of some kind. A very playful plant. Already it was trying to strangle and squeeze him to death. It reminded Harry of Cleopatra.

"I can't play with you now." He told it, pulling the man-crushing creepers off of him as if they were dandy lion weeds.

"Maybe a bit later, okay?"

The vines folded in on themselves in an almost sulky fashion once the boy was out of their reach. Harry chuckled at it and made a mental note to obtain a cutting of it for his mother's greenhouse before he left.

...

The room behind the nearby door had a high ceiling with hundreds of flying winged keys fluttering near the arches. Harry scoffed at the sight of the brooms in the corner. If they were going to make this that easy, why didn't they just gift wrap the stone and give it to the thieves?

"Alohamora." Harry tried, pointing his wand at the door knob. Nothing happened. Thank merlin they were not that stupid, at least. Time for plan B.

"Thing?" Harry asked. The hand gave an affirmative motion and plucked a pin from Harry's robes before jumping on the door handle and beginning to pick the lock. Less than a minute later the room echoed with a resounding click that indicated the latch being undone.

"Thank you Thing." Harry said, gathering his friend and placing him back on his shoulder before walking into the next room. At first, Harry thought he was in a graveyard, but his excitement was quickly dashed. It wasn't a graveyard. It was just a giant chessboard that he obviously had to play across to be let through.

Harry was absolutely awful at chess, despite his fascination with the violence in the enchanted sets. He simply did not have the patience to correctly play a game. After ten minutes of concentrating on winning Harry would grow bored and begin purposefully sending his pieces into dangerous positions just to watch them fight.

"I will take the place of the King." Harry informed the board. The black king came to life long enough to vacate his square, which Harry immediately took over.

"Does this board have the same rules as regular Wizard Chess boards?" he then asked aloud. He would not have been surprised if he had gotten no answer, but the marble queen beside him nodded once. Harry resisted the urge to scoff. This obstacle was a stupid as all the others had been.

For you see, chessboards were not usually enchanted with anti-cheating charms, given how difficult cheating would be if you were playing against a focused opponent, and talkative chess pieces willing to rat you out. But this only posed a problem if you wanted to cheat subtly. Draco and Ron quit inviting Harry to play after he discovered how to exploit this loophole.

Harry gave the white pieces an awful grin as they made their first move, sending a pawn forward.

"Black pieces." Harry commanded loudly. "All advance. Attack!"

His marble army leapt to life at his command and surged across the board as one, slaying the row of pawns before the other side could comprehend what was going on.

While the animated stone was busy attacking each other, Harry slipped between the fight and through the door beyond, leaving the game to destroy itself.

...

Harry had to duck the moment he stepped into the room to avoid the deadly blow of a mountain troll. This creature was much bigger than the one he had killed on Halloween night, and looked very hungry. Harry doubted that it was fed with any regularity, and that resulted in a desperate, murderous beast.

How fun.

"Finally an obstacle that is actually a challenge." Harry said to Thing. "This is much better."

Harry dodged a second swing of the troll's club as he studied his prey with a careful eye. This particular troll was too big to be dispatched in the same way that he killed the last one.

"Diffindo!" Harry yelled, aiming at the neck. The beast roared as a nick appeared on his throat, but its thick hide protected it from most of the magic. Harry cast the spell a second time, putting more force behind his words. The cut widened and a small trail of blood appeared, enraging the monster more. It brought its club down again, and Harry was not quick enough this time around. The heavy wood collided with his shoulder, causing the Addams to smack against the wall painfully.

"I'm fine, Thing." Harry assured the frantically signing hand. He was no stranger to pain, but his immunity was useless if he could not lift his arm. Harry gritted his teeth when he discovered the extent of his injury, and gave a growl so menacing that even the troll paused for a moment. Harry moved his wand to his left hand and quickly disarmed the troll of his club with a simple Wingardium Leviosa. Then he continued to cutting at the troll's throat with diffindo after diffindo. The beast roared in agony and tried to get at the boy again, but Harry was no longer giving the creature any opportunity. It continued to slow as it lost blood, making the floor slick with the crimson liquid, until finally it fell.

But Harry did not stop there. He continued slicing away until the head was completely severed from the body. Only then did he take a step back to admire his work.

"Not bad." He said at last. "A little sloppy, but not bad for being left handed." He scowled down at his temporarily useless right arm. If he had been anything other than an Addams, his arm probably would have been cleaved away from his body.

"Let's keep going, Thing."

...

After the troll, the next task was simple. Once inside, enchanted fire had sprung up at the two exits. There was a line of bottles filled with various potions, and a riddle to tell you which would help you move forward and which would help you move back. Once again, if it had been up to Harry, he would not have even have left the potions here. He would let the thief get caught, unable to leave or go on. And if he needed to pass, he would bring his own potions with him. Sort of like a very unorthodox lock and key.

In any case, Harry cheated a little. He tasted a few of the contents to see what was what. The wine was horrendous, and the poisons were a little bit dated to taste as well as they should, but eventually he found the two that would help him. Then he tossed back the potion, and moved forward through the magicked flames.

...

Of course, Harry had not expected to see a familiar mirror in the last room; the same mirror that showed your heart's deepest desire.

How curious.

Harry stepped forward and looked into it, half expecting to see the same family revel that he had seen before. Instead he saw himself, smashing the philosopher's stone into pieces.

Harry believed that he understood. Only someone who wanted to find the stone would see themselves finding it. Someone who wanted to use it (or destroy it, in his case) would be stuck, only able to see what they wanted to use the stone for.

Harry closed his eyes and began to organize his thoughts. He hated the idea of the stone and wanted it gone, but he had to find it first. Therefore, he had to make finding it his biggest priority. He let his desire to obtain the rock grow until it surpassed his wish to grind it into the dust. Then he opened his eyes again.

Only his reflection looked back at him. A moment before Harry could let his anger be known, his double smirked and pulled a garnet colored stone from his pocket. Harry felt a weight being added to his actual pocket and grinned.

What a pleasant game this had been. He turned around and headed back in the direction of the main castle, stopping to pick up the troll's head and a clipping of the strangling plant along the way.


End file.
